Barron County Family Recovery Court
Barron County Family Recovery Court: A Collaborative Approach to Family Healing highlights how a multidisciplinary team works together to support families impacted by substance use and child welfare involvement. By combining accountability with compassionate, trauma-informed care, the program connects participants to treatment, strengthens parenting skills, and promotes long-term recovery. Through strong collaboration among courts, social services, treatment providers, and community partners, the Family Recovery Court fosters safe reunification and healthier outcomes for children and families.Heidi Erickson has served as the Family Recovery Court Coordinator since the program's inception in 2019. She works with multidisciplinary teams to support families impacted by substance use, promoting recovery, accountability, and safe reunification. Heidi brings both leadership and compassion to her work, rooted in a strong commitment to trauma-informed care, motivational interviewing, and strengths-based practices. Heidi is a UW-BC alumni, graduating with her BAAS degree in 2018. While at Barron County, Heidi served as President of SGA, the UWBC volleyball team, and numerous clubs throughout the college.Megan Hahn is a Prevention Specialist with the Barron County Department of Health and Human Services, where she is dedicated to strengthening the well-being of youth, families, and the broader community. In this role, she works on meaningful grant-driven work across several key areas, including Family Recovery Court, youth-focused programming, and substance abuse prevention — all with a shared goal of building healthier, more resilient lives in Barron County. Her path to prevention has been shaped by a rich and varied background in service. From working as an Emergency Medical Technician and 911 operations to experience in medical administration and prevention, she has spent a career showing up for people in their most critical moments — and helping communities build the tools they need before those moments arrive.Amanda Twitchell is a Recovery Coach at Arbor Place, a treatment center in Menomonie, WI. Having graduated from the Barron County Recovery Court program in 2022, Amanda brings a deeply personal perspective to her work. She now serves within the very program that helped shape her own recovery journey. In this role, she walks alongside individuals navigating the challenges of substance use, offering guidance, encouragement, and hope rooted in lived experience. The Thursdays at the U weekly series is free and open to the public thanks to support from the UW-Eau Claire – Barron County Foundation. Neither seating reservations nor parking permits are needed for in-person attendees. Although in-person attendance is encouraged, most talks in the series are livestreamed (https://nam11.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fvideoplayer.telvue.com%2Fplayer%2FHDwuV3is8s5nNzWpdoDe7ey1dmO7F3CA%2Fplaylists%2F8694%2Fstream%2F865%3Fautostart%3Dtrue%26sequenceNumber%3D1%26showtabssearch%3Dtrue&data=05%7C02%7CWALKOFDS%40uwec.edu%7Cf13a5e6bbf2c4308312f08dd03880331%7Cdd068b97759349388b3214faef2af1d8%7C0%7C0%7C638670604907012062%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=UuQsjo7nHe3gTwTkZAnb6hSKH6wAboo%2FQ3v8oFpyokY%3D&reserved=0). They also are archived and can be watched later on the Thursdays at the U (https://barron.uwec.edu/business-community/free-viewing-lecture-series/?_ga=2.171377317.402834410.1672450604-1799238988.1655731488) webpage.