{"id":2209,"date":"2023-07-31T15:41:09","date_gmt":"2023-07-31T15:41:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/core-usa.org\/?p=2209"},"modified":"2023-07-31T16:51:52","modified_gmt":"2023-07-31T16:51:52","slug":"caren-barnes-speaks-about-recovery-christmas-and-a-little-box-turtle","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/core-usa.org\/index.php\/2023\/07\/31\/caren-barnes-speaks-about-recovery-christmas-and-a-little-box-turtle\/","title":{"rendered":"Caren Barnes Speaks about Recovery, Christmas, and a Little Box Turtle"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Caren Barnes Speaks about Recovery, Christmas, and a Little Box Turtle<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Meet Caren Barnes!\u00a0 Commencing CORE’s one-year recovery program just this past March, Caren manages our 6th<\/sup> Street House for women and also is a member of our Second Mile benevolent group.\u00a0 Her testimony for us was dense with information about her addiction, recovery, and hopes for the future.\u00a0 So, we\u2019ll get straight to the point and write about parts of her testimony that maybe we shouldn\u2019t, i.e., the top secret stuff about CORE!\u00a0 We can\u2019t sit on this (looking both ways) so here goes . . .<\/p>\n\n\n

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Ever wonder how certain things happen at CORE?  Not the regular stuff, but like, the BIG events?  CORE\u2019s annual Christmas event, for example?  This is a truly monumental undertaking.  But who actually does this stuff?  How do they do it?  What actually happens behind the scenes?  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

We had no idea how to answer these questions until Caren walked through our door.  While we exchanged the usual pleasantries, CORE\u2019s Operations Manager Gary Osborn peeked into the office, said hello, and thanked Caren for all of her hard work.  That sure got our attention.  What work?  It turns out that she and her teams of volunteers \u2013 in the middle of summer \u2013 have been preparing for Christmas all along!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Every year, CORE sets up a gigantic holiday store where people find toys and household items to last throughout the whole year.  It\u2019s all free, and last year\u2019s event was so big that it took four classrooms, a central foyer, and a long hallway at the Hollister School District just to hold everything.  Everything was beautifully organized by item and category, too.  This year may be even bigger, and the person in charge of organizing this year\u2019s event was sitting right in front of us.  As Caren explained:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe [Branson] warehouse was getting to be kind of a mess.  We\u2019d had people every Tuesday picking up donations and putting them there.  Little did I know it all had to be separated, marked, and organized.  Gary\u2019s like, you know all this has to be organized?  He asked if I would take on the project, and I agreed.  So the girls from 6th<\/sup> Street, or any other girl who wants to volunteer, have been coming over there.  It\u2019s become a huge job.  A really huge job.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

At first I\u2019d just go over there and play my music and start in.  From there, I started having meetings over there where we\u2019d get pizza and stuff.  And then people who needed community service started coming over.  So now it’s Mondays and Tuesdays, and I make sure everybody gets over there for whatever time they need.<\/em>\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We always wondered how CORE\u2019s Christmas event happens.  Now we know.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

For her own part, Caren didn\u2019t notice what CORE was doing last year for this holiday event.  She was still a client and \u201cstill in myself<\/em>,\u201d as she puts it.  What a difference a year in recovery makes.  What\u2019s important to her today is that people in need will get help.  \u201cWhatever they need, here it is<\/em>,\u201d she says, \u201cIt\u2019s their Christmas.  They don\u2019t have to know who I am, but it\u2019s the best Christmas present I can give to the community.  I\u2019m overjoyed to help, and it really warms my heart<\/em>!\u201d  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Caren certainly has a lot to be thankful for today, too, but it wasn\u2019t always so.  She lost her husband while she was still in her teens, and then spent twenty years in her addiction.  \u201cAt one point, my kids got taken away<\/em>,\u201d she remembers, \u201cIt was a big fight.  All the money, the court dates.  I was eight years on probation and did jail time.  My whole life seems like a blur.  I can\u2019t tell you how many times I ended up in jail.  DUI, meth, crack.  I was always caught<\/em>.\u201d  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

How bad did things get for her?  She was unable to even think about what life might be even if she got clean.  She explains, \u201cI was powerless, but at the time I didn\u2019t really know what addiction really was.  I\u2019d seen it most of my life.  It was the harsh reality of life, normal<\/em>.\u201d  Moreover, a mere eighteen months ago, Caren\u2019s life had become completely unmanageable.  To top it off, she was fired from her job because of substance use.  A despondent Caren had to walk home because she had lost her driver\u2019s license, too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fortunately, every cloud has a silver lining.  In this case, losing her job turned out to be the first in a chain of events that brought Caren to CORE.  While she was trudging home that day, Caren saw a recovery facility where they also held AA\/NA meetings.  She\u2019d never been to a recovery meeting before, not ever, but this time she remembers \u201cI was upset and thought, well, I’m going to walk in on this meeting.  I need something<\/em>.\u201d  At that very meeting she met the son-in-law of her boss, the one who just fired her.  He promised to help get her into a detox, to which she consented.  \u201cI went home, packed my bags, and went to detox.  I was there for 40 days.  And a counselor there kept talking about Branson, Missouri.  She said, I have a place I think you should go, it’s called CORE, in Branson.  She said, I don’t know why, but I just see that you would do good there<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Caren had never been to Branson before, but she made the trip with the help of her concerned father.  The first thing she remembers was our women\u2019s coordinator, Jen Brinkman, taking her in with open arms.  Because she arrived on a Friday, she spent the day at our recovery center and attended our Peace in the Storm worship services that evening.  \u201cWhen I first went to church, I cried when Cary [McKee] was talking<\/em>,\u201d she remembers, \u201cI knew I truly belonged here.  After church, I couldn\u2019t wait to get home and see the house<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She describes herself as a slow starter in the program itself.  Nevertheless, once she saw the truth about who she is apart from recovery, there was no turning back for Caren.  She says, \u201cI did pay attention in class, and then the more attention I paid at church and in class, I came to really understand that I\u2019m here for a reason, and that I\u2019m powerless.  After that, I\u2019m giving everything I can to my program from here on out.  I became a chore coordinator.  I\u2019m volunteering.  At work I\u2019m a totally different person.  I\u2019m giving everything I can<\/em>.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This past March, Caren commenced our one-year recovery program.  She vows never to forget where she came from, and she credits God for her recovery:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“I feel like my turnaround is because of having God in my life.  I hear God now.  Not by sound, but by the journey I\u2019m on and which way He wants me to go.  Living in what He wants me to do.  I meditate.  I reflect back on my days.  I do my steps and preach it, walk it, and do everything I can.  This is my one shot in life.  I can\u2019t see living any other way ever again<\/em>.\u201d  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

On April 24th of this year, Caren received a telephone call from Jen asking if she wanted to manage our 6th<\/sup> Street House.  \u201cJen said, we talked about it, and we think you\u2019d be the best fit.  She said it\u2019s your house; do what you can to make it a great one.  I\u2019ve been there ever since, and I absolutely love it<\/em>.\u201d  To Caren, being a house manager is not having  people look up to her.  She explains, \u201cI\u2019m helping other girls.  I\u2019m the same as them, and I\u2019m going to treat them the way I want to be treated.  That\u2019s what I do at 6th Street.  We\u2019re all the same.  Everybody feels like they can open up, and we\u2019re all really close here<\/em>.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

As a supplement to her new role, Caren is determined to put her gardening skills to use.   \u201cI did take crop science and love gardening<\/em>,\u201d she says, \u201cI’ve always pictured myself in a truck with a bed full of flowers and stuff that I’m doing<\/em>.\u201d  By the happiest of circumstances, she\u2019s not only eligible to get her license back, but she also was working on it the very day we spoke.  We hope Caren gets her truck soon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Our interview with Caren then brought yet another unexpected bonus.  She told us stories about a box turtle living in the yard at 6th<\/sup> Street House.  We listened intently, and we wondered \u2013 is there a children\u2019s book in these stories, perhaps?  The off chance that Caren may become a famous author someday makes us hesitant to retell these valuable stories here.  It suffices to say that the box turtle is busy at 6th<\/sup> Street House and is enjoying many turtle adventures there. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

On the family front, Caren excitedly described how she maintains close contact with loved ones. \u201cMy main amends were to my children.  Raising them, they knew I wanted them to finish school.  They\u2019d seen some of my caring nature.  I fed them every night.  But they didn\u2019t really know me.  Now, I talk to them almost every day.  Of course, they forgave me before I even made amends.  And I’m a grandma now.  I do talk to her [i.e., her granddaughter] every day.  We Facetime.  She points at me through the phone<\/em>.\u201d  Caren also reports being in good standing with her siblings (\u201cthey\u2019re proud of me<\/em>\u201d) and suddenly offers \u201cMy dad called me just yesterday, too, which he\u2019s never really just called me out of the blue<\/em>.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, what\u2019s in Caren\u2019s future?  For one, she loves her job here in Branson and plans to be there for awhile.  She started the job in the first week she got here, and further reports, \u201cIt\u2019s great to be working and being in the best health I\u2019ve ever been, and to be at peace.  Money can\u2019t buy what I feel right now.  I feel richer now than I\u2019ve ever been in my entire adult life<\/em>.\u201d  Hearing this, we naturally are very pleased for Caren.  But what about CORE?  And the turtle?  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Happily for all, as a member of our Second Mile group, Caren will be here for at least another year.  She still feels new to recovery and wants to give herself time to learn what she likes and doesn\u2019t like, and about self-care and loving herself more.  Also, she says confidently, \u201cas a house manager, I feel like I\u2019ve more to give.  I’m not done helping.  I still feel like I’ve got a lot to do here<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Caren Barnes Speaks about Recovery, Christmas, and a Little Box Turtle Meet Caren Barnes!\u00a0 Commencing CORE’s one-year recovery program just this past March, Caren manages our 6th Street House for women and also is a member of our Second Mile benevolent group.\u00a0 Her testimony for us was dense with information about her addiction, recovery, and…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2209","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/core-usa.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2209","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/core-usa.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/core-usa.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/core-usa.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/core-usa.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2209"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/core-usa.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2209\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/core-usa.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2209"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/core-usa.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2209"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/core-usa.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2209"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}