Instilling Change: Heidi Englemann

Heidi grew up in Odessa, Missouri, surrounded by a large and loving family. While her father traveled the country building skyscrapers, her grandfather became a steady father figure in her life. She is the oldest of 45 grandkids which meant she had a large family support system. This support system allowed Heidi to reach many of her goals as a teenager and young adult, including making varsity on her high school cheerleading squad, graduating with honors in the field of art, and later devoting herself to raising her children as a stay-at-home mom. When she was not at home with her children, she was giving back to her community through coaching high school student-athletes in various sports including football, cheerleading, and softball at Odessa High School.

Life changed drastically for Heidi after the death of her husband of twenty years. Following his struggle with liver failure, he died by suicide. Heidi and her children found him. While overwhelmed by grief, she turned to prescription pills and alcohol to numb the pain of his passing. Heidi's addiction eventually progressed to the use of methamphetamine. A second marriage brought even more hardship for Heidi. Her second husband was a con man who involved her in passing counterfeit money, ultimately leading to her arrest. As a result, Heidi was incarcerated for a total of 15 years.

During incarceration, Heidi grew determined to prepare herself for a better future. She participated in Celebrate Recovery and took classes to earn her Microsoft Office, Small Business Entrepreneurship, and Office Management certifications.  Rather than allowing prison to define her, Heidi focused on building the skills and confidence she would need for her life after release. Returning to the community was a challenge, as it is for anyone post-incarceration. One of the biggest challenges was finding stable housing. She faced many trials at various housing organizations, mainly struggling to focus on her sobriety and healing. She remembered thinking that there was minimal support that existed for those who were leaving prison; that they were expected to figure everything out on their own. This finally began to change when she encountered Second Chance. For the first time, she felt like she had found people who wanted to see her succeed.

Through Second Chance, Heidi received assistance with housing, employment, and rebuilding her life as a whole. Her resource specialist helped her apply for jobs throughout the Kansas City area, eventually landing her a full-time job as a forklift driver. Second Chance was also able to provide her with a phone and laptop which allowed her to continue her growth and education. Today she is in the process of completing certifications for Peer Support Specialist and National Alliance for Recovery Residences. Beyond just the practical assistance, the encouragement she received from group leaders, her Resource Specialist, and the rest of the Second Chance staff became one of the most meaningful parts of her recovery. Simple phone calls and text messages served as reminders that people truly cared, which restored a sense of hope during one of the most difficult points in her life.

With help from Second Chance, Heidi moved into Raven House as a resident. It was here that her recovery journey was able to come full circle. Due to a staff complication at the Raven House, Heidi was given an opportunity to step forward in a leadership role. Eventually, she was asked to take over as Senior House Manager and Program Director. While this was intimidating at first, Heidi was able to take it on and run with it. According to her, this was only possible with the encouragement of those who had supported her in her recovery.  Now when she gets home, she spends her evenings managing Raven House, conducting intakes, maintaining the home, and mentoring those who are in recovery. Heidi said that one of the things she needed most during her recovery process was to know that she mattered. Today at Raven house, Heidi strives to make sure everyone who walks through the door knows exactly that.

Today Heidi celebrates four and a half years of sobriety and is most proud of the person she has become. After losing everything, including her home, her vehicles, and nearly all sense of hope, Heidi has gained the opportunity to be someone who others look up to while helping them rebuild their lives. She credits Celebrate Recovery, her family, Raven House, and Second Chance with helping her to discover her purpose. Her greatest piece of advice to those in a similar position is simple: “Stick with it. Don’t give up. Even when everything feels impossible, there really is a light at the end of that tunnel.” Heidi believes recovery is possible because she has lived it, and today she is helping others believe it, too.