In 2015, we adopted three key areas to focus on for the next three years to help fulfill our mission to permanently transform lives through Christ-centered ministries.

1. Quality Programs: Since focusing on the quality of our programs, we have implemented The Foundry Way, which consists of five components to completely restore lives:

• Case Management: Case management services are the backbone of our comprehensive 40-month continuum of care. Our case managers connect people with overwhelming problems to demonstrative solutions. Due to the opioid epidemic, Central Alabama is facing a public health crisis of overdose, Hepatitis C and HIV infections. Program participants receive access to free testing, and if diagnosed, our counseling team steps in with case management to support them in the decision process. Case management allows education partners to provide access to free electrical, welding and various certifications through Lawson State Community College and Wallace State Community College. Case management also connects program participants to legal aid he/she may need and helps navigate the legal and judicial system.

• Counseling: Through weekly one-on-one and group counseling sessions, program participants learn to identify destructive patterns in their lives, ways to break the cycle of their behaviors by applying God’s word and develop life skills. They work through the consequences of their past decisions and begin feeling emotions again they have not experienced since first abusing substances. We support family reconciliation through one-on-one counseling as well as F.I.R.S.T. (Families In Recovery Seeking Truth), which is a monthly support group for family members.

• Education: Education services run through all aspects of the Foundry’s programs, but there are some educational requirements for all program participants. The first six weeks is an orientation process designed to provide a sound foundation taught by our Chief Program Officer, Brandon Lackey. Some of the sessions are Dealing with Stress in a Stressful Environment, Finding Your Purpose, and Why We are An Employment Readiness Program. Next, program participants join a Genesis Change Group facilitated by trained staff or volunteers where they work through the award-winning, biblically-based The Genesis Process curriculum by Dr. Michael Dye. The third and most intensive educational component is the companion Genesis Process Relapse Prevention workbook. Each program participant is educated about his/her individual relapse cycle and creates an individualized relapse prevention plan under the supervision of a Foundry Counselor. Educational services also include access to the Resource Center with a computer lab, resume preparation assistance, and continued adult education. Small groups are also important opportunities under our education component.

• Employment Readiness: Every program participant completes 36 hours of employment readiness each week. When many participants enter our program, they lack job skills and are unemployable. Our mission is to empower those who are unemployable when entering our program to become employable, productive members of their community. Employment readiness gives program participants the opportunity to build relationships, learn new skills, work toward a common goal, practice discipline, assume responsibility, receive accountability and have structure, all of which are critical to a healthy, non-addictive lifestyle.

• Aftercare: Foundry Aftercare is the last of five components of The Foundry Way, under the direction of Graham Bufford. Graham will be awarded his Associate Licensed Counselor credentials when he graduates with a Master of Arts in Counseling from UAB next spring. Our participants make a 12-month commitment to complete the program and in return, they receive a lifetime commitment to support their life-recovery through continued counseling, case management, education, and employment services or referrals.

2.  Learning and Teaching: Our goal is to create a culture that actively supports each employee’s development of his/her gifts and talents and guides them to their best role on our team of servant leaders. When an employee’s God-given gifts and talents are cultivated and used, it has a positive impact on the quality of our programs and financial sustainability of the ministry.

3.  Financial Sustainability: Our goal is to ensure future viability through financial stewardship, business diversification, innovation and discipline. Currently, 65% of our budget is provided through revenue generated from social enterprises. Our objective is for social enterprises to meet 80% of our budget. Since honing in on financial sustainability, we have explored various options and have conducted market studies on adding additional thrift stores. As a result, we opened our fourth thrift store location in Pelham this month. Our Pelham thrift store provides additional employment readiness opportunities for our program participants, serves another community and will help meet our long-term objective for social enterprises.

Our goal is to deliver the highest standard of process driven programs to transform the world of Recovery, Rescue and Re-Entry. I believe by focusing on the the three key areas and implementing The Foundry Way will assist us in achieving our goals.

John Roland, MDiv, MBA
Director of Development and Marketing