Denny Wilson | SpeakerHub

Personal Details

Current position (3)

Author | Speaker | Consultant

Addiction Recovery Mogul

Founder, President/CEO

Wilson Empowerment, Ltd.

COO

No More Heroin, Inc.

Achievements (7)

A Person in Long-Term Recovery

Denny's recovery journey began on May 21, 1995. Having founded and operated Ohio's largest and oldest Recovery Community Organization from October 1995 to October 2019, Denny served as the companies President & Chief Executive Officer having helped over 20,000 individuals and their family members.

Award-Winning Author

Denny is the author of several books written in the hopes of assisting those experiencing the affects of a substance use disorder, and those looking to manage the symptoms associated with mental illness.

SAMHSA Definition of Recovery

Denny participated in the development of the national definition of recovery as presented by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA).

Statewide Curriculum Development

Denny played an important roll and provided technical assistance and content for the Ohio Peer Recovery Supporter Curriculum. Also advocated for taxonomy and Medicaid reimbursement for providers offering Peer Support as a means to help the sick.

Ohio Definition of Recovery

Denny participated in the development of Ohio's definition of recovery as presented by the Ohio Mental Health and Addiction Services (OhioMHAS).

Peer Supporter Roles & Responsibilities

Denny participated in and contributed to the creation of the roles and responsibilities of Ohio Peer Recovery Supporters.

Founding Board Member ORH

Denny is a founding Board Member of Ohio Recovery Housing (ORH), Ohio's state agency and affiliate of the National Alliance for Recovery Residences (NARR). Denny served as Vice-President of ORH from 2014 to 2017.

Degrees (1)

Human Existence & Experience

University of Practical Knowledge

1976 to 2021

Bio

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Bio #1

After 19yrs of active addiction beginning at the age of 6, Denny has spent more than 26 years ensuring people have access to and the availability of the quality care necessary to help them avoid and overcome the challenges associated with drug & alcohol addiction.

As the creator of many service policies, contributor to, and advocate for many of the modern recovery practices, Denny remains dedicated to agencies and organizations whose primary purpose is to assist those with substance use and/or mental health disorders. As a direct care provider of addiction recovery support services for more than two decades, Denny uses his personal and experiential knowledge to help shape legislation, service policy, and service delivery across the country.

Denny's 2022-2023 goal is to personally assist 100 individuals access quality services, help 50 agencies in the upgrading or adding of new services, AND to help 10 communities develop systems of care designed to ensure the personal recovery success for the individual, causing health and wellness to spread throughout the community.

Bio #2

Present & Former Addiction Recovery Related Activities

* Founder, President/C.E.O. F I Community Housing, Inc. 1995 to 2019

* Summit County Opiate Taskforce Member – 2016 to present

* Summit County Drug Court Consultant - 2005 to 2008

* Ohio Recovery Housing (Founding Board Member) Vice-President 2013 to 2017

* Summit County Reentry Network (Founding Board Member) 2012 to 2015

* Special Consultant to Ohio State University – 2013 to 2015

* SAMHSA/CMHS (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration/Center for Mental Health Services) National Advisory Council – 2010 to 2014

* Disability Rights Ohio (Ohio Disability Rights Law and Policy Center, Inc.) Advisory Board– 2013 to 2014

* Ohio Community Support Planning Council – 2007 to 2009

* Ohio Legal Rights Service PAIMI (Protection and Advocacy for Individuals with Mental Illness) Advisory Council – 2007 to 2011

* Ohio Access To Recovery Sustainability Workgroup – 2009 to 2014

* Summit County Youth Emancipation Task Force – 2010 to 2012

* Summit County ADM Board Recovery Tools Workgroup (Crisis Redesign 2015)

* Summit County ADM Board Family / Peer Support (Crisis Redesign 2014 to 2016)

* BRAS-TACS Stakeholder & Facilitator (multiple dimensions)

* Recovery Coach Trainer of Trainers (CCAR Model 2010)

* Peer Supporter Trainer of Trainers / Supervisor (Ohio Peer Supporter Model 2012)

* National Alliance for Recovery Residents NARR (Local/Regional Lead 2015 to 2016)

* Facing Addiction National Volunteer/Support Team (2016 to 2018)

* Grief Recovery Trainer / Facilitator

RECENT SAMPLING of PUBLICATIONS, PAPERS, WORKSHOPS AND PRESENTATIONS

05/20 Author Recovery House Rescue: The Resurgence of Superior Care in a Non-Clinical Setting

03/20 Author It’s True…They’re Gone: 6 Keys to Self-Care After the Loss of a Loved One

09/19 Keynote Speaker Ohio Veteran’s Recovery Day “Making Connections” Bath, New York

05/19 Author F*ck Heroin: Keys to Winning on the Addiction Battlefield

10/17 Co-Workshop Facilitator Ohio Recovery Housing Conference Columbus, Ohio

09/16 Keynote Speaker Ohio Recovery Conference Columbus, Ohio

05/14 Co-Facilitator: Living with thoughts of dying; Addressing suicidal thoughts and impulses Cortland, New York

05/14 Panel Member: Understanding the role of peers in treatment and recovery; how providers and the MH system can successfully partner with individuals with lived experience Cortland, New York

03/14 Panel Member: General Adult Trauma Screening and Brief Intervention in Primary Care and Public

Health Settings Rockville, Maryland

07/13 Established Ohio’s 1st SAMHSA Regulated Recovery Community Center

12/13 Certified Peer Supporter Training – Conducted Ohio’s 1st week-long (40 hour) training in Akron, Ohio

12/13 Ohio Peer Support Curriculum – Co-created model outline and content. Columbus, Ohio

11/13 Ohio Definition of Recovery Committee – Assisted in development of Ohio’s Definition of Recovery (Columbus, Ohio.)

Presentations

Presentations (1)

Recovery 101: "It's Possible" Keys to Unlocking Our Full Recovery Potential

In this series, Denny offers 3 distinct and purposeful high-powered stage or workshop presentations designed to enhance the recovery efforts of all attendees, helping the audience strengthen and build on their recovery foundations. The series also equips participants to work with others striving to achieve/sustain abstinence, and meet their recovery objectives. They are:

1. Your Systematic Success: How to Passionately Prepare, Polish, and Execute the Perfect Recovery Wellness Plan

2. Narrate the Great: Exercising the Power of Your Personal Story to Properly Instigate and Inspire Hope

3. The Self-Conscious Sensation: Maintaining Self-Awareness to Maximize Community Impact