Partner Spotlight: Missouri Coalition of Recovery Support Providers
Missouri Coalition of Recovery Support Providers (MCRSP) Overview
The Missouri Coalition of Recovery Support Providers (MCRSP) was founded in 2015 to bring together faith, community, and peer-based addiction recovery programs across Missouri together under one umbrella. Today, MCRSP has 126 member organizations who work together to restore and rebuild lives and families seeking recovery from substance use disorders through immediate access and long-term relationships.
MCRSP is also the recognized body for accrediting addiction recovery homes in the State of Missouri. To date, MCRSP has accredited 196 recovery homes in Missouri, and these facilities are home to more than 1,700 individuals in recovery on any given day.
MCRSP is currently co-coordinating the engagement of faith leaders across the state on Clean Slate Missouri alongside Empower Missouri and a diverse group of stakeholders.
Why Clean Slate Is Good for People in Recovery and the Faith Community
Sixty-one percent of the residents and clients served by the members of MCRSP are currently on either probation or parole. A vast majority of the remainder have a history of justice involvement. It is the goal of MCRSP to assist these individuals to receive assistance with their substance use issues and to rebuild their lives. However, many are held back from receiving good jobs, permanent housing, and other issues because of their criminal records. A criminal conviction should not be a lifetime sentence, and people who change their lifestyles should be afforded the same opportunities available to everyone else in society. In fact, a criminal record and the secondary effects it causes can bring a sense of despair in the lives of people that have had a history of addiction, keeping them in the cycle of drug and alcohol use.
MCRSP supports the Clean Slate Initiative because it gives people hope that they really can change their lives and live a good life with a good job and good housing. Clean Slate is all about giving people a second chances and people need to know they can be redeemed.
