Addiction can happen to anyone. From the destitute to the affluent, it has no preference of social status. Just ask Virginia “Ginny” O’Keefe, who had worked her way up on Wall street as an executive assistant who handled major accounts, then slowly began to climb down as she struggled with addiction. Luckily, she was wise enough to seek help.
After a few years of being clean, Ginny sought employment in the field of addiction treatment and was employed by the Diocese of Columbus’ sHARE program. From there, she went back to school and became a licensed Chemical Dependency Counselor and a certified hypnotherapist. During this time in her life she became friends with several other women in recovery, and together they dreamt of founding a safe and drug free environment where women could work on their recovery and issues of physical and sexual abuse. In 1984, that dream became a reality as Amethyst was born
with the help of a donated house from one of the founding mothers.
Over the last 25 years, Amethyst has turned into a facility with a $3.5 million budget, complete with permanent housing units and long-term treatment programs. Today it is considered the best practice model for gender-competent treatment.
Ginny’s visionary program has helped countless women and their children develop the skills necessary to achieve lifelong sobriety and economic addiction. “It is my passion and life’s work to make sure women and their children have access to the time and resources they need to achieve lifelong recovery,” she says. “I see miracles every day as they return to our community as healthy and whole productive citizens.”
To find out more about Amethyst, visit: amethyst-inc.org ▪