Our Staff

Haley Barbieri
Haley BarbieriProgram Director
My name is Haley Barbieri, and I am a woman in long term recovery. I started my journey at 25 when the pain became unbearable for me and was left at a cross-roads in my life.

Call 617-657-1031 to reach Haley

When I started my journey to recovery, I was skeptical and not sure where to turn. I focused on finding those already in recovery, listening to their guidance, all while participating in my own journey. Today, as the program director of MA Young People in Recovery (MyPiR), I understand the challenges in taking the first step towards recovery and help other young people in the same situation I was in a few years ago.  I am passionate about what I do and know there is a better life. The sky is the limit.  “Hardships often prepare ordinary people for an extraordinary destiny.” – C.S. Lewis

Paul Smith
Paul SmithAssistant Program Director Southeast MA
I’m Paul Smith and am in recovery. After entering recovery, I was faced with a scary question. “What do I do now?” I felt like my all my bridges had been burned and all my opportunities had been squandered.

Call 617-657-1031 to reach Paul

I remember being so overwhelmed and not knowing where to begin. I did not know anyone who did not drink or get high. What would I do in my free time? On weekends?  I heard about a group from a friend and decided to check it out. I started participating in this program as a peer. I attended planning meetings, workshops, and events. I made friends who had been through the same trials and tribulations as me.  It helped me to build a network and move forward in this journey with confidence. It is my hope that I can bring my experience and give back to our community. I learned that, while I was lonely, I did not have to be alone.  I’m honored to join this team and to help young people to build a life that they can be proud of.

Katie Chapman
Katie ChapmanYoung Adult Regional Peer Recovery Boston/Metro-West
I’m Katie and I am grateful to say I am in recovery! I spent many years believing that the only way of getting through life’s anxiety and depression was with drugs and alcohol. I didn’t know any other way.

Call 617-657-1031 to reach Katie

Luckily, I discovered I was not alone and many of my peers and those before me have felt the same way. I found myself in rooms with others who had the same struggles and now are living happy, joyous, and free. Without places to go with likeminded people who reached out to me, I would have stayed in the exhausted and loneliness of addiction. It is a privilege to be able to reach my hand out to others through MyPiR.

“Grant that I may seek to comfort than be comforted, to understand than be understood, to love than be loved”- St Francis

Annie Shute
Annie ShuteYoung Adult Regional Peer Recovery Specialist for Central MA
I’m Annie Shute, and I am in recovery. I started my journey at the age 25 when drugs become more important to me than my family. It pushed me away from my mother, stepchildren, and significant other.

Call 617-657-1031 to reach Annie

I became obsessed with the thought of drugs and it being the only thing I needed. This is when I truly realized things needed to change. Being a young adult new to the world of recovery was overwhelming. It made me feel extremely lost and alone. I felt that every second I needed to occupy myself with a safe activity. I was then introduced to MyPiR. My time with this program has brought me life changing connections and amazing experiences. I have taken all my struggles and pain and turned it into the life I wanted. MyPiR has yet again given me another life changing and amazing experience, by giving me the opportunity to help others, the way they helped me.