In November, 15 years ago, Tim Robinson, an attorney living in Martin County, Kentucky, sat down at his computer with an idea.
At the time, he had no idea what his idea would evolve into – and that the end result would be an organization with a workforce of 1,000-plus employees delivering addiction treatment and recovery services to more than 2,000 people daily.
He could not have anticipated that his idea would transform the lives of thousands of people in counties across the Commonwealth. All he knew was that he wanted to do something to address the sprawling substance use that was wreaking havoc in the Eastern Kentucky communities where he had grown up, and his family had roots.
Tim had recently worked through his own battle with alcohol addiction – something he developed as a coping mechanism following the loss of his mother to terminal lung cancer. Two years into his recovery journey, he took a leap, resigning from his position as a county prosecutor and starting a healthcare ministry to help others impacted by drugs and alcohol. That one-person healthcare ministry would become the healthcare provider now known as Addiction Recovery Care. But it all started with a simple Google search – “how to start a recovery center” – on November 3, 2008, as Tim tried to figure out a way to give back and serve others struggling with the terrible disease that had affected him and so many others.
In the early days, Tim’s healthcare ministry was focused on connecting those who needed help with existing treatment programs. Back then, treatment wasn’t as accessible and widespread as it is today, and this was a service people urgently needed.
“I felt called to do more,” recalls Robinson. “And that’s where the idea of a treatment center began to evolve.”
Getting a treatment center up and running was Tim’s next step – his way of doing more. But it wasn’t easy. Finding a property suitable for a residential treatment center presented major challenges. Tim encountered what felt like endless roadblocks before finally finding a place and getting the proper approvals. In December 2010, ARC opened the doors to its first treatment center, Karen’s Place, in Louisa, Kentucky.
Since then, ARC has only continued to grow. And today, Tim is proud to celebrate 15 years of service to individuals and families impacted by addiction.
“The path to get here hasn’t been without its obstacles, but I’ve always let my faith guide me and remained committed to serving others and a greater good,” added Robinson. “It was that faith and commitment that got me to take action all those years ago, and it’s what still drives me today.”
ARC now operates more than 30 addiction treatment programs in 23 Kentucky counties and is working to open new locations in Virginia and Ohio in the new year. ARC will open its first inpatient psychiatric hospital in Greenup County this month.
