SOUTHEAST SPRINGS, Colo. (KOAA) — Five months ago, Corey Woodard opened Living Proof Recovery in southeast Colorado Springs with a mission shaped by his own past.
Woodard spent more than 20 years in the Department of Corrections.
““Illegal drug activity, robberies…" said Woodard.
Today, he says his past is not what defines him his actions now do.
“I'm living proof that my past does not define me. My mistakes do not define me. I define me today,” Woodard said.
That idea is also behind the name of the recovery center.
Woodard returned to southeast Colorado Springs wanting to create a place where people could find support, structure and a path forward.
“Not too far from here is where I caught the case at and I came back to this area to help rebuild the same community that I once tore down.”
Five months after opening, he says Living Proof has continued to grow.
The center has worked with more than 300 people and currently houses about 30 people. Woodard says the housing is full, with people on a waiting list.
But the impact can be seen in more than numbers.
Jeffrey Jones found a community
Jeffrey Jones came to Living Proof after hearing about it from someone he met while he was already living in another sober living home.
He says he was looking for structure and a way to move forward.
“I’ve never felt more community than I have here at Living Proof,” Jones said.
Jones says that support changed the way he viewed his own recovery.
“I've been a chronic drug user my entire life, since I can remember about 11, I started smoking weed and then it just progressed from there.” he said.“I never thought that I would be the guy to just sit and share my story, but I do it every day now and uh I noticed that it does inspire people and it does uh help everybody else”
Now, he is a house manager for a Living Proof home with 13 people.
He says having already experienced different stages of recovery helps him understand the people he is now helping.
“Having been through those levels, it kind of inspires me to help them. So I’m able to pay it forward,” Jones said.
For Jones, recovery is also about knowing he is not alone.
“We are all living proof,” Jones said.
More than a place to stay
Woodard says the goal is not simply to get someone off the streets or provide them with a bed.
Living Proof also works with people on life skills, including financial literacy, coping with stress and learning how to stay sober.
“It’s one thing for me to pull them off the streets, give them a place to stay, give them a little bit of motivation and purpose,” Woodard said.
The next step, he says, is helping people develop the skills they need to continue moving forward.
“How do I fight through that? How do I keep moving forward? And that’s what we teach,” Woodard said.
The center has also expanded its housing and its reach since opening.
Woodard says Living Proof is now working to grow while continuing to meet people where they are, including those who may not be ready to enter housing.
Preparing for winter
As winter approaches, Woodard says the need for support is becoming even more urgent.
He says the center needs more help from the community and is preparing for the challenges colder weather can bring.
For Woodard, that urgency is personal.
“Every winter, I lose someone. And again I’m gonna say it again, not this year,” Woodard said.
He says he believes community support can help make a difference.
“With the help of the community, I feel like we can make sure that we don’t lose anybody this year,” Woodard said.
Living Proof is looking for volunteers and winter donations, including blankets, socks, and food.
“Anybody that wants to help in those snowy nights drop off at the warming shelters, please reach out to me, you know what I mean, if you got a van, you got a truck.”
For Woodard, the mission comes back to the same belief behind the center's name: people can move beyond the worst parts of their past.
“If I can do it, everyone can do it,” Woodard said.
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