Opinions of presenters do not necessarily reflect those of the Family Addiction Network.
PLEASE NOTE: For information on past meetings, please go to the Past Meetings page.
2026 Meetings
Tuesday September 15th - 7:00 -8:30pm
West Long Branch Community Center
115 Locust Ave., W Long Branch, NJ
This one is not to be missed!
⭐⭐Signs and Symptoms of a Potential Relapse and How to Address It With Your Person ⭐⭐
We are pleased to be able to present David Mahler, a Board-Certified Addiction Recovery Coach (CARC) and Certified Facilitator of Addiction Awareness (CFAA) who has helped more than 100 individuals and families navigate addiction, recovery, and the challenges that come with rebuilding their lives.
Dave’s work is deeply personal. Having experienced addiction and recovery firsthand, both personally and within his family, he brings a unique combination of professional knowledge, lived experience, compassion, and understanding to those he serves.
Raised in Brooklyn, Dave faced significant adversity from an early age, including the loss of his father at age 10. His journey later included working in the World Trade Center during both the 1993 bombing and the September 11, 2001 attacks—experiences that profoundly shaped his perspective on resilience, connection, and the value of supporting others through difficult times.
His commitment to addiction awareness became even more personal through his daughter Dana’s battle with addiction. After walking alongside her through her struggles, Dave tragically lost Dana to fentanyl poisoning. In 2024, he also lost his son David to COVID-related health complications. These heartbreaking losses have deepened his commitment to helping individuals and families affected by addiction, grief, and loss.
Today, through recovery coaching, sober companionship, public speaking, and addiction awareness education, Dave shares a message of prevention, connection, hope, and recovery.
His mission is simple: to help people understand that no matter how difficult life becomes, recovery is possible, lives can be rebuilt, and hope can be found.
Open to all - Bring a friend or family member!
You are not alone!
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Tuesday August 18th - 7:00 -8:30pm
West Long Branch Community Center
115 Locust Ave., W Long Branch, NJ
INTERVENTION
What is an intervention, really?
Who can benefit?
When do you know it's time for one?
These are the questions we'll explore at our August meeting.
We are pleased to welcome Michelle Christo, a certified national drug and alcohol interventionist with 15 years of experience helping families understand substance use disorder and navigate the path toward recovery.
In 2018, Michelle founded A New Way of Life Intervention Services, LLC, creating a safe place for families to find support, begin healing, and make positive, lasting changes. She has worked alongside professionals and families across the United States, helping loved ones caught in the grip of addiction.
Families often suffer in silence for years, unsure of what helps, and what unintentionally hinders the recovery process. Throughout her career, Michelle has conducted nearly 300 interventions and educated hundreds of families, empowering them with the tools to create lasting, system-wide change. Her approach focuses on healing the entire family rather than only treating the individual struggling with substance use disorder.
This is open to all...
You are not alone!
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Tuesday July 21st - 7:00 -8:30pm
West Long Branch Community Center
115 Locust Ave., W Long Branch, NJ
Relapse - Is It Really Part of Recovery?
For many families, the journey through addiction recovery can feel like an emotional roller coaster. Just when hope begins to grow, a relapse can leave loved ones feeling discouraged, heartbroken, and wondering, "What now?"
Is relapse a failure, or can it be part of the recovery process? How can families respond in a way that supports healing while also protecting their own well-being?
Join us as we welcome Sara Velez, LCSW, an addiction specialist with more than 14 years of experience helping individuals and families navigate recovery. Sara currently serves with Seacrest Recovery in Eatontown and specializes in helping people heal from trauma, abuse, addiction, childhood wounds, and other life challenges. She is also certified through EAGALA as both a Mental Health Professional and Equine Specialist, providing Equine-Assisted Psychotherapy.
Along with Sara, we are pleased to also welcome our long time friend and supporter Carley Dietrich (also from Seacrest!)!
These 2 powerhouses will share valuable insights into relapse, recovery, and practical strategies that can help families better understand the process and move forward with greater confidence and hope.
We hope you'll join us for this informative and meaningful discussion, because no one should have to navigate addiction or recovery alone.
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Tuesday June 16th - 7:00 -8:30pm
West Long Branch Community Center
115 Locust Ave., W Long Branch, NJ
💥"When Recovery Comes Home: Understanding and Supporting a Loved One in Early Recovery"💥
We are changing it up a bit this month! Jamie Munson, a person in sustained recovery will inform and guide us, drawing from her personal experience, in a discussion about early recovery.
She will cover topics including:
• understanding and respecting your loved ones boundaries when they are returning from treatment
• Setting reasonable expectations for your loved one
• Alarming behaviors to look out for
• thoughts and feelings of somebody in early recovery
• healthy ways to support someone in recovery after treatment
You may have met Jamie at a recent meeting, she is eager to help and share what she knows, we know this will be informative and impactful!!
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Tuesday May 19th - 7:00 -8:30pm
West Long Branch Community Center
115 Locust Ave., W Long Branch, NJ
💜💜💜
Importance of Sober Living
We are so happy to welcome Beck Garcia, the Administrative Coordinator and Comptroller for Recover Revolution, a nonprofit organization dedicated to helping individuals get into - and stay in - recovery. With lived experience in addiction and recovery, Beck brings both personal understanding and professional structure to the organization’s mission.
Sober living played a meaningful role in Beck’s journey, providing the accountability, support, and sense of community needed to build a strong foundation in recovery. Today, Beck is passionate about helping others access the same opportunities that made a lasting impact in his own life.
Beck shares his story to offer hope, provide perspective, and help families better understand the recovery process.
Hope to see you there!
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Tuesday March 17th - 7:00 -8:30pm
West Long Branch Community Center
115 Locust Ave., W Long Branch, NJ
Nervous System Regulation to Manage Stress
You will want to attend this one!! This is the cornerstone of self care,
whether you are caring for a loved one with Substance Use Disorder,
or simply need some powerful tools for regulating YOUR nervous system,
this is going to be experiential and informative!!!
Daily stressors can feel overwhelming. This presentation offers simple, science-backed somatic tools to help you stay grounded, calm, and resilient through it all.
You’ll learn:
* Breathwork techniques to quiet the stress response and bring your body back into balance.
* Mindful movement to release tension in the fascia and support a more flexible, adaptive nervous system.
* Easy grounding practices you can use anytime during holiday chaos or emotional overwhelm.
* Approachable science that explains why these tools work.
Come as you are and leave with practical rituals you can use daily to regulate your nervous system and move through life with greater ease.
We are excited to have Sydney Pentland to share her much needed knowledge and expertise on this subject!
Sydney is the Owner of Vital Breathwork, a business focused on educating individuals, businesses, community-based organizations about the effects of stress on daily life and overall health. By emphasizing nervous system regulation and using holistic methods like breathwork, somatic exercises, and mindful meditation, she helps reduce stress, balance emotions, and empower others to enhance their mind-body connection and reclaim their personal sovereignty.
Before starting her business, Sydney worked as a program manager and grant coordinator for various non-profits and the Department of Education in New Jersey. Throughout her career, she observed a significant gap in mental health services for the marginalized, at-risk communities she served, particularly in addressing rising levels of distress. As a domestic violence survivor who also struggled with chronic health conditions due to PTSD, Sydney is now deeply passionate about advocating for access to holistic wellness practices and education on nervous system regulation within public health programs. Today, she shares her love of community and holistic treatment as the Community Engagement Specialist & Somatic Coach at The Archangel Centers, a substance use disorder treatment facility in Tinton Falls, owned by the Jersey Shore’s Mike “The Situation” Sorrentino.
Outside of her professional life, Sydney is a proud mom to a wonderful 6 year-old girl. She enjoys reading, swimming, yoga, and crocheting ;especially at the beach! She also loves watching comedy TV, spending quality time with friends and family, and keeping up with the latest celebrity gossip.
Hope to see you there!
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Tuesday February 17th - 7:00 -8:30pm
West Long Branch Community Center
115 Locust Ave., W Long Branch, NJ
February is Heart Health Month! In flow with that, Susan Marco will share with us about heart coherence, which can be a powerful addition to your self-care.
When you love someone impacted by substance use disorder, your heart is often under constant strain - emotionally and physically.
Heart coherence is a simple, evidence-based practice that helps regulate the nervous system by bringing the heart, breath, and mind into alignment. When this happens, stress hormones decrease, emotional clarity improves, and the body shifts out of survival mode.
For family members, heart coherence isn’t about fixing anyone else, it’s about supporting your own well-being. It can help calm anxiety, reduce emotional overwhelm, strengthen boundaries, and support heart health during prolonged stress.
Join us as we explore how heart coherence can become a practical, everyday tool for resilience, regulation, and self-care - especially when life feels uncertain.
Because caring for yourself is not selfish. It’s essential.
Hope to see you there!
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Tuesday January 20th - 7:00 -8:30pm
West Long Branch Community Center
115 Locust Ave., W Long Branch, NJ
💜💜💜
Healing from Violence
This is a tender topic, but an important one.. What do you do, or how do you handle when you think there is violence involved, or know it. And even if this is not part of your story, this presenter has a lot of wisdom to share about resilience and recovery!
Kim Ciccone is a domestic violence advocate and community care liaison who uses her lived experience with domestic violence, mental health challenges, and substance use to bring awareness, compassion, and hope to others. Her story reflects the deep connections between trauma and the ways people cope, as well as the strength it takes to rebuild. By transforming her pain into something bigger.
Kim now speaks to empower individuals and families, reduce stigma, and remind others that healing is possible and that something beautiful can grow from even the hardest experiences.
Our presenter this month is an amazing woman with so much wisdom to share. She is a survivor of many things, and is an advocate for people getting the real help they need. Beautiful, inside and out, I hope you will come and support and be supported!
Hope to see you there!
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