BUCKHANNON – Three decades ago, the seeds of Community Care of West Virginia began to grow out of a single clinic in Rock Cave – the Tri-County Health Clinic – when it hired Rick Simon as its chief executive officer.

By the time Simon retired exactly 30 years later, on Sept. 13, 2023, Community Care of West Virginia had become a Federally Qualified Health Center that operated 16 community health center locations, 51 school-based health clinic sites, seven 340(b) pharmacies and one dental office.

Simon has now passed the reins to new CEO Trish Collett and the entire team he has gathered and trained over the years. He recently reflected on his many years with Community Care.

“I’m 70 years old, and I have a strong management team from top to bottom,” Simon told My Buckhannon. “The person who replaced me is exceptionally strong, bright and will provide good leadership, so when you reach a certain age, you hand over the controls to other people who are younger and ready to be leaders.”

“If I’ve done my job and hired the right people, if I’ve worked and helped those people within my system grow, then no one should ever miss me,” Simon said. “I hope they miss my bad jokes, and I will miss all of them, but as far as anyone seeing any changes in care, you probably won’t see a lot of changes.”

Collett said Simon played a significant role in adapting health care to the needs of communities in central West Virginia.

“He has been instrumental in changing the landscape of health care delivery from Tri-County Health Clinic to an organization that has expanded over his 30 years as a CEO for Community Care of West Virginia,” Collett said. “He had foresight into the changing environment of health care to make improvements, and part of that was making sure everyone could have access to health care in the communities that we are located.”

Before beginning his tenure at Community Care, Simon worked in the world of higher education.

“Most people in higher ed move from school to school via promotions, so I’ve worked at three colleges and universities, and I came back to West Virginia because my kids were becoming teenagers, I wanted them to have more of an environment that I had growing up,” Simon said.

“I came back for that purpose,” he added. “I worked for a short time at a hospital that I did not enjoy. There wasn’t anything wrong with the place; it just wasn’t a good fit for me.”

Eventually, he heard about a position with the Tri-County Health Clinic, which was meant to be a three-year venture.

“I promised that I’d be there for three years, and now it’s 30 years later,” Simon said. “It was an interesting job, and things changed a lot within the health care industry, but it was also very much a job that you felt like you were doing something worthwhile. I never felt anything like that when I was working in higher ed.”

“There were a lot of dedicated people over there – we were very small, we were eight employees – so it was a much smaller environment than what I was used to, but it was enjoyable,” he said.

Collett said she and Simon have worked together periodically for the last 27 years.

“I’ve worked with him on and off in different avenues of health care for 27 years, so we have worked in coordination for 27 of his 30 years,” Collett said. “His expertise has rubbed off on me, and we’ve had an opportunity to share our differences, with me being a health care provider myself and with his administrative background. He has created a positive workforce environment that has grown Community Care to what it is today.”

Tri-County Health Clinic began in 1980, and Simon joined the team Sept. 13, 1993.

“It was very easy to become attached to a project where so many people put their love and concern for the community into it,” Simon said. “That’s how Community Care began, and that’s how we’ve always operated – with the community in mind – and we’ve moved forward and grown tremendously.”

Simon was reminded of a friend who lived in Rock Cave who used to say, “Rock Cave was the center of the Earth,” and Simon had always responded, “I guess you’ll start seeing superheroes if that’s the case.”

“I didn’t realize how true that was,” he said. “It became the center of the universe in the sense that those folks who were pouring concrete, donating dollars and pennies, and school kids who were collecting things, all these people could not have imagined the impact that they would have on the greater Central West Virginia community 40 years later.”

“We rebranded this as Community Care, but the whole idea of Community Care is based on that spirit, and the ideas that were given to us by those folks at Rock Cave 40 years ago,” Simon added.

They had to change the name from Tri-County Health Clinic because Community Care exists in more than three counties now.

“About 22 or 23 years ago, we were pretty much broke, and we weren’t broke through anything that we had done incorrectly, but we had such a large number of people who were paying a very minimal cost for care, and we had too many people,” Simon said. “We were doing very good care, and the financials didn’t match.”
Simon knew the entity needed to find a remedy.

“I went to the board at that time and said that one of two things had to happen: we had to find a benefactor, or we had to expand our patient base to include different groups,” he recalled.

He warned the board that bringing someone in as a benefactor to take over Tri-County Health Clinic could result in the loss of their mission and goals.

“If you let somebody take you over, you won’t control the mission, you won’t control your future, and I told them if we expand and develop our system, then we’ll have five or six or seven very rough years financially because anyone expanding a small business knows you suffer the stresses of growing and developing your system,” Simon said.

That’s when the board endorsed expansion to other central West Virginia communities.

“You also keep the clinic in existence, maintain control, and you expand out your mission and your ideas to other communities that may need it a lot,” he said. “The reality was that a lot of our patients at the time were coming from Buckhannon anyway.”

Currently, Community Care of West Virginia has 540 employees, with another 24 or 25 undergoing training, and Simon said they expect to have over 600 within the coming year.

“The process has changed tremendously,” he said. “When I began 30 years ago, all the records were kept on paper, and if you were in Washington State, and something went wrong, it was very difficult to access information. We were one of the first adopters of electronic health records, and we’ve been on electronic health records for probably 17 or 18 years.”

Simon said the transformation from electronic to digital health care records is one of the biggest changes he has seen in the health care industry during his tenure.

“I think we are able to measure things much better from a healthcare standpoint, they can find information quicker, doctors can do more research online and can customize treatment much more than they could have before,” Simon said.

His overall goal was to continually offer better care to the community.

“We improve outcomes, but it’s one of those issues where you don’t exactly know or see all of the impact you make,” Simon said. “You’ve actually saved lives, the organization has saved lives, but you may not see it because maybe that cholesterol was handled before the person had a heart attack, or maybe a stroke was averted, and you don’t always know, but if you take care of quality, your outcomes for the larger population are better.”

“It was my job to put this company in a position that would enable it to prosper in the future, being financially strong, but even more so, being clinically strong for the people we serve, so they can get the very best care possible,” he said. “That was always our first decision – to do what is best for the health of the patient.”

Collett said she feels ready to take on her new position as chief executive officer after her long mentorship with Simon.

“It’s been an ongoing process,” Collett said. “We knew his retirement was coming, so it’s been a continual conversation for the last couple of years. When you work with someone for as long as we’ve worked together, it’s a good transition, but it’s also difficult when you’ve worked close with someone like that in that role and have built an organization like we have.”
​
“I felt comfortable taking over this position when I did it because I had such a good mentor for the last 27 years,” she said.

My name is Dustin Jackson. I’m 40 years old, and I grew up in French Creek on a beef farm. I had a good childhood, but my parents divorced when I was 13.

Around that same time, I started experimenting with drugs and alcohol. I hung out with older kids, and I did the same things they were doing so they’d keep wanting to hang out with me. By the sixth grade, I was smoking marijuana… and by the seventh grade, I was doing harder drugs like speed and acid.

I always say I’m an addict at heart… I don’t know how to shut it down. A lot of the kids I was doing drugs with at that age grew out of it. They experimented early and got it out of their systems…

Unfortunately, I did not.

My drug use escalated over the next several years. I’d catch the school bus into town and instead of going to school, I’d leave to get high; then I’d catch the school bus back home. I had missed so many days of school that I eventually dropped out in the eleventh grade. I got my GED and started working on the farm.

A few years later, I got a job in the oil field, and everyone around me in the industry was using drugs at that time. We were all away from home, working out of town, and that’s just what we did. I was eventually laid off, but my drug use continued. 

In 2008, my life was forever changed after I was in a terrible accident. My wife had just found out she was expecting our first child when I crashed a four-wheeler and suffered a severe spinal cord injury. After the wreck, I couldn’t feel anything from the waist down, but luckily, after surgery and a few months of therapy, I was able to walk out of the rehabilitation center on a walker.

For the pain, I was given a prescription for morphine and oxycodone. I had dabbled with pain medicine before, but I wouldn’t have considered myself addicted to it. Now I had my own prescription… that was disastrous for me. I became addicted very quickly, and I abused them daily for the next five years.

I didn’t realize how bad off I was, but in 2013, I failed a random drug test at the doctor's office after they suspected I was abusing drugs. They suspended my pain medicine prescription and offered to secure me a bed at Chestnut Ridge Hospital, but I refused.

Instead, I started buying the pain pills. It was expensive, especially since I was on disability and didn’t work a full-time job. One day I was buying the pills, and the dealer asked if I wanted to buy heroin – he said it was cheaper and the high was even better.

My decision to buy heroin that day led to five years of heroin addiction. I don’t remember a lot from that time of my life, but what I do remember is terrible…

In 2018, me and my now ex-wife were using heroin at our house... we didn’t know there was fentanyl in it… she overdosed. Unfortunately, my nine-year-old daughter was home from school that day. We were charged with felony child neglect creating a substantial risk of injury or death. 

We went to jail, and we were forced to terminate our parental rights; my mom was given custody of our kids.

I managed to get clean and stay clean for five months, but then I slipped up… It led to me overdosing, too.

Thankfully, my life was saved with Narcan, and something changed in me that day… The seed of sobriety had already been planted in me during the five months I was clean, but the overdose scared me. It made me realize how powerless I was over the drugs.

That was a dark time, but I can look back now with a different perspective. I needed that relapse to get where I am today; I needed to be scared into it. It’s unfortunate, the way things had to happen in my life, but had they not, I may not even be here.

Right after my overdose, I went to the Opportunity House in Buckhannon for five months, and I’ve been substance-free ever since.

I’ve completely turned my life around in the last few years. I talk to my son and daughter every single day, and they’re at my house all the time. I bought a house closer to Buckhannon, got my driver’s license back, and bought a truck.

One of the things that’s changed my life the most is working at Community Care as a peer recovery support specialist. I gave up my disability check to work full-time… that’s something I’m proud of. Working helps give me purpose – a reason to get up in the mornings. I didn’t have that desire or drive for a long time… for years, I’d wake up just to get high.

But now, I get to use what I’ve been through to help people, and that means a lot to me. I see myself in them, so I love when I see that light come on, when they finally get it… because not everyone gets it right out of the gate.

People in recovery need compassion and support… so many have none at all. And it's so important if they’re going to be successful… They don’t need to be beaten down, because they’re beating themselves down enough.

In my role, I get to be that support and accountability to them. Having someone you’re accountable to is very important in recovery, too… it can be the difference in staying clean or relapsing. There’s a lot more to recovery than just abstinence. When you stop using, all these feelings and emotions come, and you have to find a way to deal with it that isn’t drugs. As a peer, I can share with them how I deal with those feelings.

And working at CCWV keeps my own recovery fresh in mind, which helps keep me on track.
​
I try not to look too far into the future – I don’t want to set expectations and set myself up for failure. But I’m pretty content with my life right now. If everything remains how it is right now in five years, I’ll be satisfied. If I’m still clean in five years, if I still have a job, if my kids are still healthy… I’ll be happy.

​
BUCKHANNON – Community Care of West Virginia’s chief executive officer has retired after 30 years.
Rick Simon, the CEO of CCWV, was surprised Sept. 13 – the day of his official retirement – with a building dedication in his honor.

Rosemary Thomas, president of the Board of Directors for Community Care of West Virginia, Community Care staff and other community members gathered at the Community Care building at 37 W. Main Street to honor Simon and all his hard work over the years.

“This building will be forever named in your honor as the Richard G. Simon building in recognition of 30 years of service — 30 years of commitment to enhancing access to high-quality health care in Central West Virginia,” Thomas said. “Upon [your] retirement from Community Care of West Virginia, this building will be dedicated to you in perpetuity.”

“We will send you the utility bills, and I believe the security cameras will be fed to your house,” Thomas joked. “But in all sincerity, sir, congratulations and thank you from the bottom of our hearts.”

Simon said he couldn’t have been so successful without all CCWV’s employees, its management team and the people Community Care serves.

“It’s easy to do good things when you’re around a lot of good people, and I’ve had that blessing over the years, having a wonderful group of employees, and I’ve had a tremendous management team,” Simon said. “The best compliment I can pay [them] is that this management team will never notice the fact that I’m gone, which means I didn’t do a whole lot of work or that I had really good people.”

Simon said the people are what kept him at the same place for so long.

“It’s very easy: I told them I would stay for 30 years, and they didn’t chase me off,” Simon said. “It was great, but even more so, it was fun. I enjoyed working with the people; we’ve had a great board and a great group of employees to work with, and the folks that we’re serving are wonderful.”

Thomas said they opted to dedicate the building to Simon in acknowledgment and appreciation of his many years with Community Care of West Virginia.

“There’s no real way to say thank you, but we wanted to make sure the legacy that Rick has created lives on, not only in the people but in the services that will be provided through this facility as well as across Community Care of West Virginia,” Thomas said. “This will also acknowledge his years of service and certainly all that he has done. It’s about the people, but the bricks-and-mortar also have a footprint in this community and the greater community that he has served.”

Community Care of West Virginia is a Federally Qualified Health Center located in Central West Virginia with 16 community health center locations, 51 school-based health sites, seven 340(b) pharmacies and one dental office, according to its website. 
​

​My name is Cary Bennett. I’m 39 years old, and I grew up in Buckhannon with amazing parents who gave my brother and I a great childhood. I was an excellent student throughout school, was on the honor roll, played soccer, and even earned a presidential scholarship to West Virginia Wesleyan College.

But I also struggled with low self-esteem, depression, and anxiety.

Looking back, I was first addicted to attention from men. I just wanted to be wanted so badly. I would throw myself at any guy who would give me attention, whether they were good for me or not. And ultimately, that’s how my substance abuse began.

I had just finished my first year in the nursing program at West Virginia Wesleyan when I met a guy who was 10 years older than me, and he gave me all his attention. He also had that “bad guy” image I tended to go for, so I threw every part of myself into a relationship with him. I was enthralled with this man. Soon, he introduced me to crystal meth. And not long after that introduction, I threw everything good I had away… I dropped out of college and moved in with him, and we spent most of our days doing hard drugs. I lost all my friends, and sadly, I also lost my relationship with my family – they were so disappointed in me that I couldn’t even bare to face them… I would go months without speaking to them.

Soon, my relationship with this man became abusive in every single way – physically, mentally, emotionally, and sexually. For the next 10 years of my life, I lived in misery. I didn’t know how to get out. I thought so little of myself, and the abuse made my self-worth even lower. Using drugs became a crutch… I would use to numb myself to the reality of what my life had become.

Somehow during this time, I managed to earn an associate degree in medical assisting, as well as an LPN degree. I began working as a pharmacy technician – I was a girl addicted to pills, surrounded by prescription narcotics. Not surprisingly, I was caught stealing controlled substances from the pharmacy and was arrested for the first time. It scared me to death, but unfortunately, it didn’t scare me enough.

My addiction only got worse, but after ten years, I finally found the courage to end my relationship with this man.
In 2015, I started dating another man, and it was good for a little while. But we were both addicts, and he brought out the worst in me. I started shooting up heroin, and it became my new obsession. In the peak of my addiction, I found out I was pregnant. We were happy, and we both vowed to get clean and be a happy family. What we didn’t realize was, that’s not the way addiction works…

He didn’t stop using. And neither did I. People think it should be so easy to turn off your addiction once you’re pregnant, but that’s not the case. When you’re an addict, you’re powerless… you use against your will. I tried – I wanted to be clean for my baby, but I struggled through my whole pregnancy.

When I went into labor two weeks early, I had been high the night before. The nurses knew right away that I was on drugs. They treated me horribly. I’m not saying I didn’t deserve it… But it still hurt. I had dreams of this experience being the most beautiful moment, and it wasn’t. I gave birth, and the very next day, CPS came in and took my baby away.

After two weeks, CPS gave me back custody of my son. I would love to say that was motivation enough for me to get clean, but it wasn’t. In my mind, now that I wasn’t pregnant, there was no harm in me doing drugs.

In August of 2019, my son’s father and I went to buy heroin. We couldn’t wait until we got home, so we pulled into a CVS parking lot. We didn’t know at the time that there was fentanyl in the heroin we were shooting up. As a result, we both overdosed in the car, with my two-year old son and dog in the back seat. The cops came… They took us to the hospital, took my dog to the pound, and took my son away... again. 

But… my story starts to get brighter from here, and I can honestly say that this day – the worst day of my life – was the biggest blessing of my life, even if in disguise. Had I not overdosed that day, I’m positive I wouldn’t be where I am today. For the year preceding my overdose, I was done with drugs… I just didn’t know how to stop. After this happened, after being charged with felony child neglect, I was forced to stop.

I entered a nine-month treatment program in Huntington and did very well in the program. Even still, after finishing the program, I had one more relapse that sent me back to jail for two months. But upon my release, I was sentenced to drug court, and that’s really where I learned how to live without drugs…

Last month, I celebrated three years of being substance-free.

And last year, I regained custody of my son, who is now six. He is everything to me… my motivation in life and what keeps me clean. The life I’ve lived and the things I’ve been through have made me a better mom… I’m mindful of every moment now, because I know what it’s like to lose everything.

I’ve been working at Community Care as a peer recovery support specialist since last October, sharing my story of recovery to help others overcome their addiction. I especially love working with those who are dealing with CPS issues, because I’ve overcome those same obstacles. I like to give others hope that it can happen for them, too. Eventually, I’d like to finish my bachelor’s degree… and one day, I’d love to become a therapist.
​
I share my story because I want people to know that there is always hope. You’re never too far gone, and you should never feel ashamed to reach out for help. Recovery is real. If we don’t tell our stories, people won’t know what addiction really looks like. And if we stay silent and anonymous, people won’t know that recovery is possible.

​CHARLESTON, W.V. – Aetna Better Health of West Virginia, a CVS Health® company, and Community Care of West Virginia have joined efforts to combat the pressing issue of limited access to child and adolescent psychiatry services in the state. Together, they developed the "Critical Access to Pediatric Psychiatry Program (CAPP WV)," a pioneering initiative aimed at providing rapid access to specialized child psychiatry services for at-risk populations throughout West Virginia. Aetna Better Health of West Virginia provided $1.5 million to support the program.
 
The scarcity of child and adolescent psychiatrists in West Virginia has led to alarmingly high wait times for mental health assessments and subsequent treatments. This systematic problem disproportionately affects at-risk populations, such as those within the foster care system and adoptees, who have an urgent and heightened need for these essential services. CAPP WV will serve Aetna members enrolled in the state’s Mountain Health Promise (MHP) program, which includes children in foster care, kinship care, and adoptive care.
 
CAPP WV was thoughtfully crafted to bridge the gap in access to child psychiatry services for at-risk populations statewide. The program's primary goal is to enhance access to care, limit foster transitions, and reduce out-of-state placements by establishing a dedicated crisis response unit.
 
Key features of the program include:

• Access for Aetna Members to Specialized Pediatric Psychiatry Services: CAPP WV will collaborate closely with pediatricians and primary care physicians to provide expert behavioral health recommendations for Aetna members, ensuring comprehensive mental health care for those in need.
• Timely Psychiatric Evaluations in Emergencies: In situations where on-site psychiatric care is unavailable, CAPP WV will expedite psychiatric evaluations within 24 hours, ensuring urgent interventions for children facing emergent mental health crises.
• Support for Small Rural ERs: CAPP WV will offer Emergency Room consultations and follow-ups for small rural healthcare facilities that lack access to their own behavioral health consultants, ensuring that critical expertise is available to those in remote areas.
• Bridging Appointments for Continuity of Care: For patients with medication needs who are placed on waitlists, CAPP WV will facilitate bridging appointments to long-term established behavioral health providers, ensuring seamless and continuous care during the waiting period.

 
"We are thrilled to partner with Aetna for this greatly needed behavioral health program,” expressed Trish Collett, Deputy CEO of Community Care of West Virginia. “Community Care has always been committed to providing comprehensive healthcare services to our communities and behavioral health is an important part of that. We believe CAPP WV will make a significant positive impact on the lives of West Virginia's most vulnerable children and adolescents."
 
In addition to addressing the urgent need for specialized pediatric psychiatry services, CAPP WV is committed to creating employment opportunities to meet this pressing demand. The program aims to establish a mobile mental health clinic to provide on-site crisis intervention and treatment in underserved areas, extending mental health support to those regions that have historically faced limited access to essential care.
 
“We’re always working to improve access to essential pediatric psychiatric assessments for children and families in West Virginia, regardless of their location,” said Kathy Szafran, Executive Director, Mountain Health Promise, Aetna Better Health of West Virginia. “Due to limited availability of adolescent psychiatrists, children experiencing a behavioral health crisis can spend significant time in the emergency room waiting to be evaluated. With the coordination between Community Care and Aetna, we can now offer a virtual pediatric psychiatric evaluation anywhere in West Virginia usually within 24 hours. In conjunction with the Aetna care coordination team and Critical Access to Pediatric Psychiatry, the needed assessment and care coordination for ongoing services can be available throughout the state for under-resourced children. The goal is to get children assessed, level of care identified, and appropriate services coordinated as soon as possible. Our current outcomes are promising, keeping children with family and with the services needed.”
 
By providing swift access to specialized care and creating a crisis response unit, CAPP WV aims to reduce the burden of extended wait times, limit foster care transitions, and minimize out-of-state placements, ultimately paving the way for healthier and more resilient communities.
 
Aetna Better Health of West Virginia is the sole managed care organization serving MHP beneficiaries statewide, through the Department of Health and Human Resources (DHHR), and began supporting MHP in 2020. MHP covers the physical and behavioral health care services for children and youth in the foster care system and individuals receiving adoption assistance, as well as those in the Children with Serious Emotional Disorder (CSED) waiver program in West Virginia.
 
About Community Care of West Virginia:
Community Care of West Virginia (CCWV) is a Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) located in West Virginia serving over 50,000 patients from 30 West Virginia counties with seventeen (17) community health center locations, fifty-one (51) school-based health sites, seven (7) 340(b) pharmacies, and one (1) dental office. Community Care of West Virginia employs a dynamic team of more than 500 health professionals including MD, DO, FNP, PA-C, adult and adolescent psychiatrists, licensed and master's level behavioral therapists, RPH, and DDS’s. www.ccwv.org  

​BUCKHANNON, W.Va. – After 30 years of dedicated leadership and numerous achievements as Chief Executive Officer of Community Care of West Virginia (CCWV), Rick Simon announced he will be stepping down from his role, leaving a legacy of enhanced access to high quality healthcare in central West Virginia.
 
Under Simon's leadership, Community Care has flourished – growing from a single clinic in Rock Cave, WV to seventeen locations and over 500 employees. During that time, CCWV expanded its services, forged strategic partnerships, and consistently delivered quality healthcare to the communities it serves.
 
“It has been the honor of my life to serve this organization,” said Simon. “Community Care’s success is completely because of the team of professionals who work together to provide the very best healthcare in the region.”
 
The Board of Directors has announced Trish Collett as the new CEO of Community Care of West Virginia, effective September 14, 2023. Collett brings a wealth of experience and a deep understanding of the healthcare industry, having served as Deputy CEO under Simon since 2022 and as Director of Medical Operations and Chief Operations Officer prior to that. Collett has been a part of CCWV since 2000.
 
"We extend our heartfelt gratitude to Rick Simon for his exceptional leadership and unwavering commitment to Community Care of West Virginia,” said Rosemary Thomas, President of the Board of Directors. “We are excited to welcome Trish Collett to lead us into the next chapter. With her expertise and passion, we are confident that Community Care will continue to thrive and make a lasting impact on the industry.”
 
“I am honored to have worked with Rick Simon for over 20 years and thank him for his dedication to Community Care,” expressed Collett. “I appreciate the board’s confidence and am committed to maintaining Community Care’s highest standards as we move forward and continue to expand services in our communities.”

​Community Care of West Virginia (CCWV) is a Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) located in West Virginia serving over 50,000 patients from 30 West Virginia counties with seventeen (17) community health center locations, fifty-one (51) school-based health sites, seven (7) 340(b) pharmacies, and one (1) dental office. Community Care of West Virginia employs a dynamic team of more than 500 health professionals including MD, DO, FNP, PA-C, Psychiatrists, Psychologists, LICSW, LCSW, LGSW, RPH, and DDS’s. www.ccwv.org  ​

Adam Stonestreet didn’t always plan to become a therapist. The Charleston, WV native dreamed of becoming a writer, or perhaps a teacher. But therapy never even crossed his mind.

“I love to write, and I actually still write some when I get the chance,” said Stonestreet, who has a Bachelor of Arts degree in English. “I always thought I’d be a technical writer of some sort, or an English teacher.”

But his first job out of college, working in a residential facility for teens with substance use disorders and behavior problems, led to a change in the direction of his career path. After seeing the impact of his work there, he knew he wanted to spend his professional life in a behavioral health setting, helping others work through their struggles.

Today, Stonestreet believes he’s doing exactly what he was meant to do at Community Care of Bridgeport, where he works as a licensed independent clinical social work therapist (LICSW).

“My favorite part of being a therapist is building a space where my clients feel comfortable opening up,” said Stonestreet, who lives in Fairmont with his wife of 10 years, Maria. “With therapy, it’s the trusting, safe space that helps people. With many other medical professionals, they’re often focusing on a procedure or a medication. With therapy, though, the therapeutic relationship is primary. I firmly believe that I cannot help a patient unless I have a good connection and trust with them.”

Stonestreet has watched CCWV’s behavioral health program grow significantly over the four years he’s been on staff. He attributes it largely to the quality mental health care CCWV provides.

“When I first started with Community Care in 2019, I couldn’t have imagined where the program would be today — in multiple sites, with all these therapists, and the large number of patients we serve,” Stonestreet said. “I was one of only a couple therapists in the company back then. But with the quality care we provide, we keep growing. That’s why I’m here, because of the excellent care we provide. I expect us to keep offering high-level care and to keep growing because of it.”

Although CCWV’s behavioral health program has grown at rapid speed over the last few years, and more people are seeking treatment for mental health concerns, there is still a stigma that surrounds mental health.

“We’ve come a long way in recent years, but the stigma is still there, and it’s especially prevalent in our area,” said Stonestreet. “In the Appalachian rural culture we live in, you don’t really talk about things like mental health struggles.”

Stonestreet said the only way to overcome the stigma, though, is by taking small steps, like talking openly and honestly about it. 

“What I’ve discovered in doing this is that the more my clients talk to their families and friends about their struggles, the more they realize how many of their loved ones also struggle,” said Stonestreet. “My clients often wish they would’ve had those conversations sooner… then they would’ve realized that mental health issues are more common than we may think.”

Stonestreet said he tells his patients that they can’t get over something by avoiding it.

“When we try not to think about our struggles or refrain from talking about it, it only makes it worse,” he said. “That’s how a lot of disorders develop. The only way to work through something is to talk about it in an honest way.”
​
Another step in overcoming the stigma of mental health is by training more qualified therapists who will, as a result, see more patients, making therapy more commonplace. Stonestreet plays a leading role in training interns through CCWV’s internship program. 

“We want to teach, and we want to make good clinicians who go into the world and do good work,” said Stonestreet, who oversees the program. “We believe we’re doing things well and that we have valuable experience to offer these students.”

Stonestreet said that burnout in the mental health field is problematic because therapists are underprepared to enter the field; in addition, there is a general lack of other resources to help patients, such as intensive outpatient programs and inpatient facilities. 

“At CCWV, we really give students the skills and hands-on training they need to begin working,” said Stonestreet. “And a high percentage of our interns end up working with us after graduation… we offer a very competitive entry position, and they enjoy their internships so much that they choose to work with us. It’s one of the greatest compliments you can give an internship program, when your interns want to work with you.”

One type of therapy Stonestreet hopes to train more therapists in is Parent-Child Interactive Therapy, or PCIT, a highly effective therapy treatment for children ages 2-7 that helps caregivers learn strategies to improve the parent-child relationship and promote positive behaviors in children.

“With PCIT, you see interaction between the parent and child in real time, and you’re able to correct it or coach desired outcomes in real time,” said Stonestreet, who is a certified PCIT therapist at CCWV. “You’re not just telling the parents to go home and try something — they do the activity or exercise in front of me, so I get to see in real time the effectiveness of this type of therapy. Research shows it is very effective… It’s certainly the most effective therapy I do.”

In the future, and with the continued growth of the behavioral health program, more CCWV therapists will be trained in PCIT. Another small step, Stonestreet hopes, in permanently removing the stigma surrounding mental health.

If you or someone you know is struggling with mental health, please reach out to a mental health provider. Help is available through Community Care’s behavioral health program. Please call 304-848-5770 or 304-269-9510, or visit www.communitycarewv.org/behavioral-health.

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) also provides a free, 24/7 Helpline for those struggling or in crisis. It can be reached at 1-800-662-HELP (4357).

By Melissa Parker
​
​On a recent weekend in February, Charles “C.W.” Dent II took the necessary certification to become a high school baseball coach. For some, this may seem insignificant. But for the 41-year-old Dent, it was the first step in finally realizing a lifelong dream that just four years ago seemed forever beyond his reach.

​“My dream was always to play college baseball, then become a teacher and coach,” said Dent, a Peer Recovery Support Specialist with Community Care of West Virginia. “My life didn’t work out that way. So to now be trusted with coaching and guiding kids after the things I’ve done and everything I’ve been through… it means the world to me.”

Growing up, Dent had what he called a perfect childhood. When he was 11 years old, his family moved to Bridgeport from Washington, D.C. A self-proclaimed sports fanatic, Dent took full advantage of the quality athletic programs the Bridgeport area had to offer. He was raised by hardworking and loving parents, was a good student and star athlete, and even secured a scholarship to further his baseball career at then Alderson Broaddus College. He had the whole world in front of him, he believed.

But despite his ideal upbringing and the anticipation of a bright future, during Dent’s first year of college, things took a turn that would change the course of the next two decades of his life.

​“When the girl I had dated all through high school got pregnant with my daughter, I decided it was the right thing to quit college, get a job and support the family I was about to start,” Dent recalled. “Our relationship didn’t work out the way I planned. We split up, I saw my daughter less and less, and I felt like I had lost everything I had going for me. My dreams of playing college ball and becoming a coach were gone, and now I had also lost the family I gave it up for.”
​

The next 19 years of Dent’s life were consumed by addiction… it was a rollercoaster ride of damaged family relationships, lost jobs, jail time, homelessness, and a loss of purpose beyond getting high. ​
​
A few years into addiction, he had three more children – twin boys and another son. Dent found the willpower to stop using hard drugs for 18 months. But when his relationship with their mom ended, he found himself right back in the throes of drug use.

“I love my kids,” said Dent. “But when you are so controlled by addiction, the amount of love you have for someone doesn’t matter. Your ability to be a father isn’t there. Nothing mattered more to me than getting high. It caused me to miss a lot in my kids’ lives – birthdays, kindergarten graduation, even my daughter’s high school graduation.”

Dent would soon be arrested for the first time, and upon his release find himself homeless, living on the streets of Clarksburg, in worse shape than ever before.

“I was homeless for about eight months, through the winter,” Dent remembered. “It was some of the most brutal living I’ve ever done. I’m not sure how I didn’t die. I would sleep in random places like bushes and abandoned houses. Sometimes I wouldn't sleep... I'd just walk the streets for days at a time.”

Dent was arrested again and entered a rehabilitation center for the first time. He was there for 38 days before walking out in the middle of the night to go back to the drugs. It would take a few more years of addiction, another arrest, and two more rehab stints, but things slowly started turning around in Dent's heart and mind.
​
“Throughout my addiction, I would have moments of clarity where I wanted to get clean, but the drugs always had too strong a hold on me,” Dent said. “But one day, my brother told me that my youngest son, who was seven or eight at the time, said he was pretty sure the next time he saw me would be in heaven. That crushed me. When he told me that, something changed inside me.” 

​Dent was set to go to rehab for the third time when, on his 38th birthday, he overdosed on a combination of heroin, meth and fentanyl, on his mom’s back porch. With the help of Narcan, a lifesaving, narcotic-reversing medication, paramedics were able to revive him, and he entered Harmony Ridge Recovery Center. It was there that Dent’s substance abstinence finally began.

“I jumped right into the rehab program because I was ready to get clean,” Dent said. “They encourage you to find a higher power, and I discovered my higher power is God. I never really cared for God much before then. I blamed Him for my problems. But now I was praying every morning. He helps keep my mind focused, to keep me from getting high. I like to think that God has been looking out for me for a really long time, especially with everything that’s happened in my life.”

Dent met his now wife Kelli just a few months after graduating from the program.

“Meeting her saved my life… that’s just the truth,” said Dent, who recently celebrated 41 months of being substance-free.

The couple married on the beach last June and together have six kids. “It’s been amazing knowing her,” said Dent, who now lives in West Milford. “When I tell you she’s the best, I mean it. She literally wants me to chase whatever dreams and goals I want to chase, and she supports me through it.”

Dent has spent much of the last three and a half years “building a life he doesn’t want to escape from,” as he put it. A big part of that is using his experience for the good of others.
​
“Helping others is the key to everything for me… helping others helps me stay sober,” said Dent, who frequently volunteers with the Young Men’s Association of Clarksburg. “I believe if you do good things, good things will come to you… that’s been the story of my life the last three years.”
​
Another important factor in his new path is that, through the rehabilitation programs, he learned new ways to cope with life when it doesn’t go as planned. That was especially crucial when his dad passed away from complications with pulmonary fibrosis in March of 2020.

“Watching my dad die was the most devastating thing I’ve ever been through,” Dent recalled. “He was a great man. He always had such pride in my athletic abilities. When I talked to him after I got sober, he told me to try to get it right this time. I promised him on his deathbed that I’d never get high again… that’s not something I take lightly.”

​“Having this job, having an office of my own, to be in a professional role where I get to represent Community Care at events like Recovery Advocacy Day and meet with legislators… I can’t even explain how much that means to me,” said Dent. “I know from experience that many people in early recovery have absolutely nothing… no support at all. I’m honored to be in a position where I can help guide people through their journey.”

Dent, in many ways, lost nearly two decades of his life, but those hard years shaped who he is today ­– a man whose primary ambition is to offer encouragement, hope and guidance to others, whether on the baseball field, to a room full of students, or to those in recovery.  

Today, Dent’s relationship with his children is stronger than ever. Some of his proudest moments are watching them play sports. And later this spring, he hopes to have something else to find pride in… the title of Assistant Baseball Coach for South Harrison High School… a dream finally coming true.


​If you are struggling with drug addiction, please reach out to a mental health provider. Help is available through Community Care's Addiction Recovery Program. Please visit www.communitycarewv.org/substance-use-disorder-treatment or call 304-473-2250.

In West Virginia, help is also freely available through https://www.help4wv.com or by calling 844-HELP4WV.

If you are suffering, know that you are not alone, that you are valuable, and that there is help available.

If you’d like to contact Dent about speaking opportunities, email him at Charles.Dent@ccwv.org.
​
Captions for gallery pictures above:
Picture 1: Dent with his four children on his wedding day.
Pictures 2 and 3: Dent embraces his sons after ball games.
Picture 4: Dent and wife Kelli on their wedding day at Carolina Beach. 
Picture 5: Dent, Kelli and their six children in a picture that he said is proof of the blessings of recovery. 

Community Care of West Virginia announced a partnership with West Virginia Wesleyan College to offer jobs to all new program graduates.

In a press conference Friday, West Virginia Wesleyan College announced a new Master’s Degree in Clinical Mental Health Counseling, funded through a $1.2 million investment from Aetna Better Health of West Virginia and Community Care of West Virginia.

In addition, Community Care of West Virginia will support the program by offering job positions to each student who completes the program.

“This is a great opportunity for West Virginia Wesleyan to work with key partners to serve our community while providing a degree that will ensure a successful career path for our students,” said Dr. James Moore, interim president of West Virginia Wesleyan College. “Both Aetna and Community Care of West Virginia should be commended for making this great program possible.”

Aetna and Community Care of West Virginia collaborated to identify the greatest needs for the regions they serve and found that West Virginians need mental health care. 

“A key part to Aetna’s mission is helping to build resources in the communities we serve,” said Todd White, CEO of Aetna Better Health of West Virginia. “West Virginia Wesleyan will be able to deliver the advanced education needed by organizations like Community Care of West Virginia to have the highest quality of healthcare professionals to serve patients.”

West Virginia’s low population density creates a unique set of challenges in caring for the population. Additionally, West Virginia has consistently witnessed the nation’s highest rate of drug overdose deaths. Once they’d identified the problem, the answer was clear: a higher education institution with a long history of advanced degrees in healthcare was needed to develop the bridge to a solution.

According to a press release, West Virginia significantly trails the nation in mental and behavioral healthcare providers. On average, the United States has at least one mental and behavioral healthcare provider for every 400 people, whereas West Virginia only has one for every 770 people.
​
“Community Care of West Virginia is proud of the role our organization is taking in this effort,” said Dr. Liam Condon, a psychologist with Community Care of West Virginia. “Our commitment to hire each graduate of Wesleyan’s new master’s program will help retain high-quality healthcare providers right here in the region where they are needed most for our patients.”

(article courtesy of The Inter-Mountain)

​Community Care of West Virginia
Exceeds 500 Team Members
 
BUCKHANNON, W.Va. —Community Care of West Virginia (CCWV) surpassed a significant milestone by expanding its healthcare team to now include more than 500 people across its multiple locations. Community Care’s growth reflects its mission of delivering quality healthcare services to patients throughout its footprint in West Virginia.
 
Community Care started in 1979 as a single location in Rock Cave. The organization has since grown to include 16 health center locations, 51 school-based health sites, seven pharmacies, and one dental office. Community Care serves over 55,000 patients a year and has provided more than one million patient visits since 2019.
 
“It is rewarding to see all that Community Care has become,” said Trish Collett, Community Care Deputy CEO.  “Our growing team is eager to continue providing the very best care to our patients.”
 
The recent staff increase coincides with the development of expanded services and programs, including addiction recovery and behavioral health.
 
“We are honored to have the people that we do at Community Care,” said Collett. “In order to fulfill our mission of comprehensive health care, it is fundamental to have the experienced team of professionals that makes it possible.”
 
Community Care continues to recruit new team members at multiple locations across the region. To see different opportunities that are available, visit: www.ccwv.org.