Rachelle Dickey goes over the proper use of Narcan as part of a presentation on harm reduction. Dickey is a certified peer recovery coach and Narcan trainer at L.I.T.E., where she is dedicated to helping others through their recovery journeys. Photo by Lilli Dwyer.

By Lilli Dwyer
InkFreeNews

MILFORD — Peer recovery coach and Warsaw native, Rachelle Dickey, is proud to be part of L.I.T.E.

L.I.T.E., which stands for Living In Transition Effectively, is a nonprofit dedicated to helping people with substance abuse recovery.

When Dickey met L.I.T.E. Executive Director Tammy Cotton, she was incarcerated in the Kosciusko County Jail on drug charges. Cotton often came into the jail with a book cart.

“I had been laying in this bed for 18 months,” Dickey recalled. “I knew that I was going to get out and just go back to the same thing, so I was waiting that out.”

Cotton, however, wasn’t having it.

“She started luring me out with books. She said, ‘you can’t have these books until you get out of bed and come talk to me,’ so I would,” said Dickey.

After that, she felt motivated to get off her block and walk around, and her outlook began to change.

When Dickey was released, she moved into the LITEHouse Recovery Residence in Milford, next door to L.I.T.E.’s headquarters in the Milford Methodist Meeting House.

She started attending L.I.T.E. Recovery Cafe every day it was open and eventually became one of its team leaders. Cotton raised the idea of her becoming certified as a peer recovery coach, but Dickey didn’t feel ready. Almost three years into her recovery, however, some classes came open and she resolved to take the plunge.

The job of a peer recovery coach, Dickey explained, is to “walk alongside an individual with substance abuse disorder or mental illness. … I show them what resources are out there, what to utilize, what meetings, what therapies.”

In October of 2023, she was also certified as a Narcan trainer through Overdose Lifeline. Narcan is a nasal spray used to stops the effects of a drug overdose. Dickey demonstrates how to use it during her presentations, part of a strategy called harm reduction, something she is very passionate about.

In basic terms, harm reduction is the process of preventing negative consequences from an activity by making it safer to do. In the recovery world, Narcan would be an example of this idea.

Dickey describes her work as “bringing awareness and safety to the community,” and considers preventing overdose deaths a very important part of this.

She mentioned things, like airbags, seat belts, sunscreen and medications, would also fall into the category of harm reduction.

“We’re not trying to tell anyone, ‘it’s okay, go do this.’ When we do harm reduction, we can try to introduce treatment or even a step-down program through that. … We’re just trying to make things safer for people and save a life or two if we can,” she explained.

Dickey is dedicated to spreading awareness of harm reduction in her own community. She’s now done three Narcan classes at L.I.T.E., as well as one at the K21 Health Foundation. She has some lined up for Goshen College and Rose Garden Recovery Community in Syracuse, with the goal of getting as many scheduled for the summer as possible.

On June 14, Dickey will be four years sober. What she loves most of all about her work are the people she interacts with every day, who she said feel like family to her.

“Our clients mean the most to me. They’re very vulnerable, they trust us, and because of things we’re doing in the community, they feel safe here. … They trust me because they know if there’s a solution, I’ll find it. If I have to take you to treatment at 2 in the morning, I’ll do it,” she stated.

At L.I.T.E., Dickey has also found a place of acceptance for herself.

“In this place,” she said, “I’m Rachelle. In this place, I’m saving lives. No one looks down on me here.”

Outside her work, Dickey loves hiking and paddleboarding. She is also a great fan of fantasy novels.