PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — An nonprofit organization that uses fitness to help those in addiction recovery is expanding its reach.
Since 2015, Fitness in Recovery has helped those with substance use disorder to get physically fit and maintain sobriety by working out with their peers. There are several locations in the region including in Philadelphia.
"Currently we run eight Fitness in Recovery workouts in the community every single day," said co-founder John Breen.
"Essentially ... we design and implement fitness programming in three different settings for people working through addiction, trauma, eating disorders, depression, mental health issues and things like that."
The organization also leads a charitable effort of gathering donations of clothing, food and toiletries and brings them to a treatment center in Kensington where staffers distribute the items to their clients.
"Hats and snacks and things like that," said Breen. "The community of Fitness in Recovery has grown, and we in the community look for other things to do to serve other people less fortunate than ourselves."
Fitness in Recovery is working on securing a space in Kensington where various community groups can gather as they conduct outreach efforts. "We would love to partner and collaborate with anyone else that is doing good work on Kensington," Breen appealed. "Anyone."
To find out more about programs or how you can donate, you can visit their website.