Aces of Trades: Summer Sisterman is on the front lines in the fight against addiction

LANCASTER − Summer Sisterman saw the devastation addiction can cause and decided to do something about it.

"When I grew up my life was pretty much dominated with addiction on one side of my family," she said. "And I lived in a very small town. It was kind of judgmental and people talk a lot about things that maybe they shouldn't in front of their kids. From a very early age, I started to see the stigma and stereotypes people put on people suffering from addiction, and I knew them personally. And I knew these things people were saying weren't true."

Sisterman is the site manager for First Step Recovery Center .

"We're a treatment facility," she said. "We offer outpatient treatment services and what we call residential services We offer individual counseling, group counseling. We have supplemental groups and we have sober living."

Sisterman has been with the company for almost five years. She said society sometimes looks at those with addictions as bad people or part of a counterculture. But Sisterman said there's good in everyone and that people just need love and care.

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"I've always had a different outlook on addiction because I've lost three husbands to overdoses," she said. "I knew from a young age I knew I wanted to do something to help people."

Even though Sisterman works in a most challenging field, she said she loves her job.

"The satisfaction I get mostly is when we see successes," she said. "And you can see people turn around and they are helping others. We love to hire our past clients. And then also when someone isn't successful but, they keep coming back to us because I know we've developed an environment that people feel comfortable in and that they want to keep trying."

Sisterman said it's satisfying to see people regain employment, repair family relationships and regain their self-esteem and self-worth.

Away from work, Sisterman enjoys reading, gardening, making jewelry, crocheting, water activities and spending time with friends.

"I constantly have to stay busy," she said. "So I'm really open to new things."

jbarron@gannett.com

740-681-4340

Twitter/X: @JeffDBarron

This article originally appeared on Lancaster Eagle-Gazette: Aces of Trades: Summer Sisterman is on the front lines in the fight against addiction