Laurie Johnson-Wade is the Co-Founder of Lost Dreams Awakening RCO, a registered non-profit, in New Kensington, Pennsylvania. Laurie is an Advanced Implementation Specialist (AIS) with the Opioid Response Network (ORN); a Steering Committee Member for the Peer Recovery Center of Excellence Workforce Development Committee; and an adjunct faculty member of Faces and Voices Recovery Training Institute (RTI).
Laurie is a Certified Behavioral Consultant (CBC), a Certified Recovery Specialist (CRS); a Recovery Support Supervisor (RSS); a Forensic Peer Specialist (FPS); a Recovery Coach Professional (RCP); a TRI Community Resiliency Model (CRM) Teacher; and has a degree in Health Administration. Laurie brings over 31 years of lived recovery experience (Established May 30, 1991), to the revolutionary and rewarding work of Recovery Support Services and Recovery Coaching.
Laurie is a facilitator of CCAR Recovery Coach Professional and Ethical Considerations for Recovery Coaches; a facilitator of the PA Family Support Alliance (PFSA) Recovering Families Program, the PROACT Family Education Series, and the TRI Community Resiliency Model (CRM) Teacher Training. Laurie was named the 2020 Recovery Advocate of the Year by the Pittsburgh Recovery Walk. She serves on the Board of Directors of Faces and Voices of Recovery - Chairing the CAPRSS Committee, as well as serving on the DEI Committee. Laurie is a proud member of Black Faces Black Voices (BFBV) and seeks to integrate Justice, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (JEDI) within all systems of care - spanning Prevention, Harm Reduction, Treatment, and Recovery.
Laurie is the founder of LDA Ubuntu Recovery and LDA Ubuntu Recovery Circles - a community-based Recovery Pathway, based on the ancient African Philosophy of Ubuntu.