- Top Workplaces
- Mental Health & Addiction Association of Oregon
Mental Health & Addiction Association of Oregon
MHAAO provides direct peer support in the Portland metro area through our EVOLVE and BHRN programs, day center support at the Multnomah County Behavioral Health Resource Center, and around Oregon through our Pathway Home program. Peer support programs allow individuals enrolled in them to work with a team of Peer Support Specialists who identify as having lived experience of mental health and/or addiction challenges, have made a commitment to their own recovery, have been specially trained and certified, and are willing to walk beside and support individuals navigating their own recovery journey. We also provide peer support certification training and continuing education through our Oregon Peer Training and Innovation Center (OPTIC) and through Peerpocalypse, our annual peer leadership conference.
Purpose
MHAAO promotes self-directed recovery for people with lived experience of mental health and addiction through providing peer support services and training for the peer workforce.
Vision
MHAAO is committed to promoting self-directed recovery and wellness for all individuals. We achieve this by valuing lived experiences and offering compassionate support at every stage of the recovery journey.
We support these aims through education, advocacy, recovery peer services, training, technical assistance, community collaboration, and through developing the peer workforce and leadership. By equipping real people with the tools and support they need, we can help them navigate self-empowerment and achieve lasting recovery.
We support these aims through education, advocacy, recovery peer services, training, technical assistance, community collaboration, and through developing the peer workforce and leadership. By equipping real people with the tools and support they need, we can help them navigate self-empowerment and achieve lasting recovery.
Mission
MHAAO is an inclusive peer-run organization dedicated to self-direction honoring the voice of lived experience.
Additional Culture Details
Janie Gullickson, MHAAO’s Executive Director:
“MHAAO is an organization where team members in most positions openly identify with and understand what it is like to struggle with mental health, addiction, trauma, and recovery. We have "been there, done that" too and we support each other and those we serve through that lens. It brings an authenticity and vulnerability to the workplace that is refreshing and unique."
Terry Leckron-Myers, Deputy Director of Peer Delivered Services:
"MHAAO is an inclusive organization that invites the choices and voices of all our staff. We honor the lived experience of all people and love to lift up their superpowers as well as give many opportunities for professional development for professional and personal growth."
Aniel Yates, Director of People & Culture:
"MHAAO is a place where I get to be authentically myself, and be respected no matter what walk of life I come from. That is valuable to me."
“MHAAO is an organization where team members in most positions openly identify with and understand what it is like to struggle with mental health, addiction, trauma, and recovery. We have "been there, done that" too and we support each other and those we serve through that lens. It brings an authenticity and vulnerability to the workplace that is refreshing and unique."
Terry Leckron-Myers, Deputy Director of Peer Delivered Services:
"MHAAO is an inclusive organization that invites the choices and voices of all our staff. We honor the lived experience of all people and love to lift up their superpowers as well as give many opportunities for professional development for professional and personal growth."
Aniel Yates, Director of People & Culture:
"MHAAO is a place where I get to be authentically myself, and be respected no matter what walk of life I come from. That is valuable to me."
Values
- Recovery is possible for all!
- At MHAAO, we believe that all individuals who experience mental health and/or addiction challenges can recover and that recovery, its journey, and its process are unique to the individual.
Recent Awards
Company Snapshots
