Veteran Who Found His Way Circles Back to Help Others.
Please read about my previous experience with homelessness.
Gerard is an Army veteran who served his country honorably in a stateside military hospital during the Vietnam War.
After completing his years of service, and as a result of his undiagnosed and untreated paranoid schizophrenia, Gerard found himself caught up in the drug culture of the 1970s: in and out of prison, mental institutions and eventually homeless – sleeping on park benches, in alleys and even in the woods of Rock Creek Park.
During this 30-year period, Gerard lost his job, his family and friends, and worst of all, he lost hope.
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Ten years ago, Gerard found Pathways to Housing DC and his life changed once again. ... Read more about Gerard & Pathways to Housing
My Employment / Work History: Summary
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Starting In 2007 thru 2024 (17 yrs.) I was a Certified Advanced Level WRAP Facilitator.
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Starting in 2012 thru 2024 (12 yrs.) I was a DC Department of Behavioral Health Certified Peer Specialist.
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Starting in 2012 thru 2014 (2yrs.) I was a Veterans Outreach Worker & a Veterans Peer Health Specialist Worker employed by Pathways to Housing DC: Veterans Housing First HUD/VASH Program
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Starting in 2015 thru 2018 (3 yrs.) I was employed as a Certified Peer Specialist / Advanced Level WRAP Facilitator for Our Door Consumer Focused Activity Center
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Currently I am employed by Dreamers & Achievers Center in Washington DC. 2019 - Present
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Adams Place Shelter Tuesdays - Thursdays 9am - 11am ​
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Dreamers & Achievers Center Tuesdays - Thursdays 1pm - 3pm
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I Facilitate WRAP Seminar I: Developing Wellness Recovery Action Planning (WRAP) workshops at both locations on Tuesdays and Thursdays.
I work with people who have experienced psychiatric symptoms to discover the strengths they have and can use to enhance their recovery, emphasizing the underlying concepts necessary to recovery: hope, personal responsibility, education, self-advocacy, and support.
I teach about wellness tools and strategies, such as medication management, changing negative thoughts to positive, and developing a wellness lifestyle. Empower and motivate people to work toward recovery - feeling the way they want to feel, making their lives the way they want them to be, and moving toward meeting their life goals.​​