Greeting to All ABC Recovery Center Stakeholders,

It has been a busy couple months here at the facility. Last week, we finalized our design plans for the expansion and submitted them to Plan Check with the City of Indio. We are hoping we can get through the Plan Check process in 60 days. Once complete, we will receive our Building Permit and break ground. 

Last week, Governor Newsome came to our site, as some of you may have seen. As a California Non-Profit, 95% of our funding comes through the state. A large portion of Riverside County’s funding comes from the Federal Government to the state and then is routed to the county where we maintain contracts. For these business reasons, it is huge for us to receive a visit from the Governor. The Governor was also interested in our current Expansion Project, as that $27 million comes directly from the state. The goal is to increase access to treatment. It meant a lot to us to have him here because it gives us hope this addiction and mental health issues may finally be meaningfully addressed. We welcome all our policy makers, on both sides of the aisle, here to see what we do. We hope what we have learned about our population can be used to implement an effective plan.  

I think many in the public have a perception a business, like ours, can build a new facility much like Apple or Tesla build new projects. If we work hard, save our money, and plan right. This is not the case. We maintain some private insurance contracts that allow us to make a profit, but it represents less than 5% of what we do. Our profit margins in any given year, if we make a profit, are slim. Our 990 tax returns are public record, and will confirm what I am sharing. Additionally, most banks will only loan non-profits money in the form of a line of credit. The line of credit must also be collateralized. Meaning, they place a lien on our current assets as surety for the loan. Even if we encumbered the whole facility, we wouldn’t have enough equity to build our current expansion project, and the interest and principal would completely erode any chance of ending a year with a positive bottom line. 

It is not just ABC Recovery Center who struggles with these realities. All of us local non-profits fight the same battle. Organizations like the Ranch Recovery Centers, The Latino Commission, and Soroptimist House of Hope all have similar needs. Our buildings get absolutely pummeled serving our community. We must rely on donations to do capital improvements, but most foundations have moved away from funding capital projects because they are so costly, and if the funded organization goes out of business, their investment is lost. 

The sad part of all of this is large portions of the community don’t understand how this matters to them. Substance-use impacts every facet of our society/community. It is the largest contributor to gun violence, public safety issues, broken homes, domestic violence, and the cost of incarceration on the taxpayer, just to name a few. It is also the social issue with the largest body count, over 100,000 dead every year. Our community has tried many approaches over the years to tackle this problem (Just Say No, the War on Drugs, et al. All these efforts have failed.

There are those who think that those with substance use issues, “just need to stop”. As if all these people who are affected had not considered that.  I also hear, “I had a problem and I just quit, so don’t try to tell me it’s a disease, I know.” It is a fallacy to believe, what works for one, works for all. Addiction is classified as a Mental Health Disorder under the name Substance-Use Disorder. A doctor I worked with explained to me, it is an impulsivity disorder. There are levels to it. Mild, Moderate and Severe. We have the best outcomes when we approach each person individually. If a person has a hard time with Alcoholics Anonymous, should we just let them die? The obvious answer is no. We attempt to find what will work for them. It is not a one size fits all.  

There needs to be an investment into facilities like ours and the ones I mentioned above. Many have been doing this work for over 50 years. We, collectively have information to share. We would love to have a meaningful conversation about how we can effect change in our community. It benefits us all and it's the least political issue of our time. Let's build healthy families and stop what's killing them.

Sincerely,

Chris Yingling - CEO

ABC Recovery Center, Inc.

Governor Gavin Newsom visited ABC Recovery Center in Indio, California on Friday, March 1st. The Governor’s visit was two-fold.  The first being to hear and see, first-hand, how funding from state grant monies have furthered services and capacity building for mental health and substance use disorders.  In April of 2022, ABC Recovery Center responded to an opportunity provide by the California Department of Health Care Services (DHCS) and Department of Social Services (CDSS) regarding a joint Request for Application.

This grant application encompassed Behavioral Health Continuum Infrastructure Program (BHCIP) projects ready to launch and Community Care Expansion (CCE) opportunities. This grant opportunity is meant to expand community capacity for serving the behavioral health (mental health and substance use disorder/SUD) population, funding organizations who made a commitment to serve Medi-Cal recipients.

In June of 2022, ABC Recovery Center received an award letter in the amount of $27,227,150. This funding request is now finalized, and ABC Recovery Center will be breaking ground on adjacent land to our current facility. This addition will add enough beds to provide treatment from approximately 1000+ clients annually to 2,600 clients annually. Through this funding ABC will be able to expand Intensive Outpatient Treatment, Detoxification, and Adult Residential Treatment Programs.

Additionally, Governor Newsom shared about California ballot measure, Prop 1 which authorizes $6.38 billion in bonds to build mental health treatment facilities for those with mental health and substance use challenges.

“Proposition 1 – Treatment not Tents – will refocus billions of dollars in existing funds to prioritize Californians with the deepest mental health needs, living in encampments, or suffering the worst substance use issues.”

“Prop 1 is expected to expand mental health and addiction services for tens of thousands of Californians each year, create housing settings where over 11,000 Californians with the severest mental health needs can live, recover, stabilize and thrive, and provide $1 billion to ensure our veterans experiencing homelessness, mental health and substance abuse issues are given the care they deserve.”*

ABC Recovery Center is grateful to Governor Newsom, for his vision in making life-saving services a priority for the most vulnerable and underserved citizens of California.

We are excited to share some of the newest renderings of our capital project, breaking ground this Spring. The renderings below share from top to bottom: An exterior of the new facility. an interior courtyard of the women's housing, interior courtyard of the men's housing, and two renderings of a double occupancy client room.

ABC Recovery Center has joined the Coachella Valley Giving Day initiative. Early Giving has begun, culminating on March 5th.

"CV Giving Day brings the region together as one community, raising money and awareness for our local nonprofits during the 24-hour online giving challenge. We inspire people to give generously to nonprofits making our region stronger, creating a thriving community for all."

 Please help support ABC’s mission and clients by donating to this initiative.

Each month, ABC Recovery Center provides our clients who have completed their treatment an opportunity to give their testimonial about their care. We encourage their honest assesment in hopes that it informs our care. Our mission is to guide recovery and to provide the best of care possible for those who are brave enough to make the journey to wellness. We are going to share these tesimonials with you in each newsletter, in hopes that we all learn a bit more about why our mission matters.

Shared Chris Yingling, "We tend to serve the lower socio-economic segment of our population, and really our poor program revenue covers, you know, keeping the program going. And it takes, you know, donations like this to do everything else,"

To view the coverage from Channel 3, please click the button below.

Every month, the ABC Recovery Center team identifies our Rock Stars. This is a peer designation which makes it even more special. Rock Stars are member of our staff who are going above and beyond the expectations of their positions. They are making our mission happen and are integral to the important changes we are helping our clients make in their lives.

Monthly, staff are included in the request to nominate a Rock Star. They are asked what inspired them to nominate their peer and are provided six criteria to select from that apply to their nominee. The survey is tabulated, and the winners are announced by Human Resources.

Our December Rock Star is Marianna Carbajal! Marianna has been working at ABC Recovery Center since March, 2017. Marianna is one of our residential therapists, and tirelessly works to help her clients learn a new way of life, Some of the descriptive words include, compassionate, kind, soothing, and dedicated. Marianna will do everything she can to help all of our clients, and is a voice of reason on the team.

Our January Rock Star is Brandon Garcia! All of the comments regarding Brandon were really unified, "He is always ready to work and lends a helping hand whenever needed." Brandon has been part of ABC's facilities/maintence team since he was hired. He works alongside Bob Howell our general contractor who keeps our multi-building complex maintained, since November 2022.

Pictured: Andrea Courreges, Alumni Association President, Ashely Hinesley, Vice President.

ABC Alumni Committee Members, Mandy Guntman, Eloise Black and Angel Munoz.

A big "Thank you" to the owners of La Quinta's Nothing Bundt Cakes, Ellie Koch Tropple and Jeff Tropple. Their thoughtful generosity in providing cakes for us each month helps us recognize and celebrate those in our organization who have been given another year, and a second chance at life.

Thanks so much Ellie and Jeff and thanks to your amazing team.

As one of Southern California's leading destinations for addiction treatment, ABC Recovery Center promotes wellness and healing for all stages of recovery. When we first meet the clients who arrive at our door, we don’t know what the future will hold. We welcome them without judgment and provide an individually tailored holistic and multi-disciplinary team approach that has successfully helped many others overcome their battle with substance use disorders. ABC is Licensed by the State Department of Health Care Services, as well as being accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities (CARF).

ABC Recovery Center offers a full continuum of services for those who have made the decision to make significant changes to their lives. We offer the following programs: Detoxification (Detox), Residential Treatment, Intensive Outpatient Program, Outpatient Program, and our Transitional and Sober Living Programs. We also provide a family program, perinatal services, and specialized groups for LGBTQIA constituents.

We are helping provide a future for over a thousand people a year, and that doesn’t include the number of people whose futures will be impacted when our clients are returned to them, sober and safe. We are here to provide them every opportunity to have the future they want.