Real Recovery Podcast

RRP 134 — Walter B.RRP 134 — Walter B. / From the Trap House to Kona, Part 1: 3 Rose Bowls, Then the Cheering StoppedPresenters: Julie L and Peter DEpisode length: 1:07:06Release date: Friday, October 2, 2026Walter B. grew up in Northeast Portland running before he could walk. Sports carried him from the Albina Roadrunners to Benson High School and the University of Washington, where he went to three Rose Bowls. In Part 1 of this two-part conversation, Walter tells Julie and Peter what happened when the cheering stopped: the drinking and weed that followed him from high school, getting cut by the New York Giants, years of homelessness, and a trap house in Northeast Portland. Then his best friend Matt came for him. Walter shares how he found his footing in AA, went to treatment at DePaul, and got to see his father one last time, sober.Key points00:09:16Walter was 40, in a trap house with no food or water, when someone told him the 12 steps don't work.00:11:00Growing up in Northeast Portland, running track at four or five, and Phil Knight showing up at meets with a bag full of track shoes.00:13:01Acting out at school, and a household where what happened at home stayed at home.00:15:00Benson High, a two-liter California Cooler at 13, and weed before his freshman year.00:24:17When the cheering stopped: Western Washington, then the University of Washington.00:25:33Meeting Kurt Cobain at a party, three Rose Bowls, and a share of a national championship.00:29:00The loneliness behind the fame, and late-night walks to the viaduct to sit with homeless people.00:32:16A contract with the New York Giants, a positive test, getting cut, and choosing to party.00:37:00Homeless from 1994 to 2008 while tiptoeing around the neighborhood where his family lived, and crack in 1998.00:44:35Two daughters, the loneliness, and the darkest point of his use.00:45:23In the trap house, Walter hears himself say the 12 steps do work.00:46:21He calls his best friend, Matt, who asks if he's willing to do something different.00:47:52Matt pulls up, Walter grabs his bag, and never looks back.00:49:32Calling his mom and dad, AA meetings every day, and treatment at DePaul.00:51:01An emergency pass to see his father, and the words "I got my baby back."00:52:48Julie shares the last days with her mom, and Peter talks about caring for his dad.00:56:45A daughter who just got married, a youngest child starting college, and the repairs he began making with his family.00:59:24Caring for his mom, becoming a counselor at DePaul, and learning his father may have done the best he could.01:03:44Breaking the cycle, and a man who says he is still under construction.Websites discussedAlcoholics Anonymous · Narcotics Anonymous · Central City Concern · Hooper Detoxification Stabilization Center · DePaul Treatment Centers · Portland Rescue Mission · Transcending Hope Institute · Real Recovery Podcast“I got to make it right with my father before he passed.”Walter B.Listen to Episode 134Read the episode blogNewsletter#RealRecoveryPodcast #Recovery #Sobriety #RecoveryStory #AddictionRecovery #Portland @realrecoverypodcast

RRP 133 — Go the Distance 5KRRP 133 — Go the Distance 5K / The Joy of Showing Up, One Step at a TimePresenters: Julie L and Peter DEpisode length: 1:04:49Release date: Friday, September 25, 2026Julie and Peter bring the Real Recovery Podcast to the third annual Go the Distance 5K at Fernhill Park in Portland. Runners, walkers, volunteers, recovery organizations, families, and friends come together to show what it looks like to keep showing up for one another.Hear how a call from Daniel at DePaul helped start Go the Distance, why the weekly runs matter to people in treatment and recovery, and what this community means to the people who gather there. Daniel’s mom, Gloria, and his brother, Julian Sanchez, share what it means to see Daniel remembered in a place that has grown from one run into a community.Key moments01:28Julie and Peter arrive live at the GTD 5K and meet Daniel’s family.05:52Daniel’s call to Izzy, the permission slip, and the first runs before a meeting.16:30Fora Health, movement, treatment, and community support.20:47On talks about supporting runners and recovery stories at the 5K.25:00CityTeam, recovery, and community.26:07Terry Leckron-Myers, She/Her, Senior Director of Programs at The Peer Company, introduces its peer-led work.32:49Skratch Labs on hydration and fuel for runners.39:43Timothy on finding running in recovery.44:06Greg on kindness, responsibility, and making a new day.55:03Skyler, long-distance running, and Back on My Feet.58:01Izzy closes with gratitude for GTD volunteers, partners, and community.Websites and resourcesGo the Distance · On · NW Natural · Transcending Hope Institute · Another Chance · Fora Health · CityTeam Portland · The Peer Company · Skratch Labs · Alano Club of Portland · Back on My Feet · SportsLab PDX · Athletic Republic · Thentic Nutrition · Portland Parks & Recreation · Voodoo Doughnut · Smith Brothers Farms · Discover Recovery · Real Recovery Podcast“It's amazing to watch how much pride people have in the organization. It's really, really cool.”Izzy, Go the DistanceListen to Episode 133Read the episode blogNewsletter#RealRecoveryPodcast #GoTheDistance #Recovery #RecoveryCommunity #Sobriety #OneStepAtATime @realrecoverypodcast

RRP 132 — Elton F. / From a Storage Unit to 4D Recovery: Revisited RRP 132 — Elton F. / From a Storage Unit to 4D Recovery: Revisited Presenters: Julie P. Lewis and Peter B. Dowell Episode length: 01:12:04 Release date: Friday, September 18, 2026 Originally recorded: August 23, 2024, as Episode 26 This revisited original conversation takes listeners back to the beginning of Elton F.'s recovery story. Before her current-day update, before family and service work, she was living in a California storage unit and struggling to find a way into treatment. Elton speaks plainly about what addiction took from her, the family who would not stop loving her, and the hard little decisions that finally made room for recovery. Content note: This episode includes references to meth use, withdrawal, and needles. Highlights Elton describes how early use grew from wanting to fit in, then accelerated after she began using meth. In California, she was homeless and living in a storage unit with no running water or safe place to rest. A detox bed opened, but Elton still planned to hide drugs in her car for later. During a call from detox, her mother calmly talked about everyday life at home. Elton later learned her mom collapsed after the call. Back in Vancouver, Elton's family intervened. After a moment of stillness, she handed her dad the bag she could not let go of. In treatment, Elton called her mom and asked her to remove needles she had hidden under her bed. She found a sponsor and community at the Alano Club of Portland, then eventually found her way to 4D Recovery. Websites discussed 4D Recovery Alano Club of Portland Real Recovery Podcast Listen: https://mdcr1.com/132 Blog: https://mdcr1.com/132b “I did it for them. I stayed for myself”— Elton F. #RealRecoveryPodcast, #Recovery, #Sobriety, #4DRecovery, #RecoveryCommunity, @realrecoverypodcast

RRP 131 — Elton F. / Nearly Eight Years and a Life That Kept Growing: An UpdateRRP 131 — Elton F. / Nearly Eight Years and a Life That Kept Growing: An UpdatePresenters: Julie P. Lewis and Peter B. DowellEpisode length: Approximately 41 minutesRelease date: Friday, September 11, 2026Elton F. returns to Real Recovery Podcast nearly eight years into recovery, with a growing family, a baby girl on the way, and a new fundraising and development role at 4D Recovery. She talks honestly about how recovery changes over time, why AA remains her foundation, and the freedom of building a life around family, service, and what matters most.Key points00:02 What has changed since Elton’s first conversation, including her role at 4D Recovery and buying a home with her fiancé.00:05 A baby girl is on the way, and what it means for her daughter to grow up never seeing her use.00:08 The gradual decisions that helped Elton let go, including telling people where she had hidden drugs and needles.00:09 From direct service to fundraising and development, lifting up other people’s recovery stories.00:28 Family, an upcoming wedding, and a life becoming more grounded.00:29 AA as her foundation, even as meetings and service look different in different seasons.00:35 A message for anyone hearing her story for the first time: life can get better.Websites discussed4D RecoveryOregon RecoversAlano Club of PortlandReal Recovery Podcast“Time has shown me, as long as I stay sober, that it does get better and things do heal.”— Elton F.ListenBlogNewsletter#RealRecoveryPodcast, #Recovery, #Sobriety, #4DRecovery, #RecoveryCommunity, @realrecoverypodcastReal Recovery Podcast Inc. is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. EIN: 99-1347297

RRP 130 — Matt B. / No More Secrets: A Father, a Son, and a Life in RecoveryRRP 130 — Matt B. / No More Secrets: A Father, a Son, and a Life in RecoveryPresenters: Julie P. Lewis and Peter B. DowellEpisode length: 1:38:14Release date: September 4, 2026Matt B. joins Julie and Peter for an honest conversation about a childhood shaped by silence, years spent hiding both alcohol and identity, and the recovery life he found when drinking finally stopped working. Matt shares what meetings, treatment, service, structure, and fellowship gave him, along with the relationship he rebuilt with his son.Key Points00:04:00 A strict religious upbringing, unwelcome questions, and the secrets that taught Matt to hide.00:11:00 Drinking began in his mid-twenties and became daily as pressure, parenting, and fear piled up.00:19:00 His first A.A. meeting was terrifying, but it was the first place he said he was an alcoholic.00:29:00 Matt shares his April 19, 2014 sobriety date, alcohol withdrawal, and hospitalization.00:39:00 A call for help led to treatment, M.C.C., repeated meetings, and the meeting buddy who became his husband.00:51:00 Early recovery meant saying yes, working the steps, and learning through service.00:58:00 Finding meetings that fit, fellowship, and the freedom to be open about recovery.01:14:00 Matt reflects on repairing his relationship with his son and the anniversary coins they share.01:18:00 Every day can begin with the first step.“Every day you can start the day with that first step.”— Matt B.Websites DiscussedAlcoholics AnonymousNarcotics AnonymousCrystal Meth AnonymousKaiser Permanente OregonTrue Colors RecoveryGo the DistanceAl-Anon Family Groups and AlateenReal Recovery PodcastListenRead the BlogNewsletter#RealRecoveryPodcast, #Recovery, #Sobriety, #AlcoholRecovery, #AALife, #LGBTQRecovery, @realrecoverypodcastReal Recovery Podcast Inc. is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. EIN: 99-1347297.