CADREC: Rooted in Community, Built on Recovery
In the heart of Five Points, one center offers not just treatment — but a place to belong.
In Denver’s historic Five Points neighborhood, the Community Alcohol Drug Rehabilitation and Education Center — better known as CADREC — has been offering substance use treatment since 1977. And while many things have changed over the years, its mission remains the same: make recovery possible and accessible for all.
“We’ve been around quite a few years at this same location,” said Executive Director Yvonne Martin, who has been with CADREC for more than a decade and on its board since the 1990s. “We don’t have to concentrate so much on making enough money to pay the bills. So we can be a more caring type of agency versus the bottom line. We want to get clients in the door, but we want to serve them more than we want to collect money from them.”
Commitment to service is deeply woven into CADREC’s model
“We typically receive most of our mothers with dependent children from referrals from the Department of Human Services,” Martin explained. “If they’re not referred from DHS, then we receive funding from Signal and they cover their entire treatment.”
Denise Rodriguez, CADREC’s primary clinician, has more than three decades of experience in addiction treatment. Since joining six years ago, she’s seen the agency evolve — including a smooth transition to virtual services. “All our intakes and classes are on Zoom,” Rodriguez said. “Paperwork is streamlined. We don’t use as much paper. It’s really nice to be able to have that service for our clients.”
Rodriguez’s approach is hands-on and rooted in respect. “We do a good assessment on what their needs are,” she said. “Are they doing medical? Are they doing mental health? How’s their physical health? Are they financially okay? Are they in a safe place?”
That case management mindset is crucial when serving mothers, especially those navigating pregnancy, child protective services or court involvement. “Making sure they’re taking any medication, signed up for WIC, making sure that all her needs are met during the pregnancy as well as afterwards,” Rodriguez explained.
And while referrals from DHS have slowed, Rodriguez is clear: “The women that we have had have all successfully completed. They hung in there. They came to our support group. They came to do their UAs. I’m so proud of our women.”
Recovery is Indeed a Family Journey
Rodriguez sees the program as a stabilizing force — and for some, a chosen family. “Some of them don’t have good relationships with their family or their father,” she said. “So they find that camaraderie with one another and get that support from one another.”
The curriculum includes 12-week classes in relapse prevention and anger management, but clients can stay longer if needed. “If the recommendation from the referring agency is that they continue, then we allow them to continue,” Martin said. “We always tell them — if you need any help, call us. You can come back for a while. You can do that.”
Right in the Neighborhood
What makes CADREC different is more than its services — it’s the location. “We’re right in the community,” Rodriguez said. “You don’t see too many agencies right in the hood with the community. You just come over harem, 3315 Gilpin, and you’re right here.”
That access matters, especially in a neighborhood with deep roots and evolving needs. “The community knows what we’re doing and what’s here,” she said. “They come by, they say hi. We get people all the time coming by and seeing what we do.”
CADREC also offers onsite UAs and 12-step meetings, creating a one-stop resource for support and connection. “It’s kind of like an umbrella agency. Come and get treatment here, do your UAs here, get your support, and you can even go to a meeting.”
Built for the Community — and by the Community
CADREC’s story began with Walter Jackson, a Denver resident who petitioned the city to open a treatment agency specifically for the underserved Black community. “There was not one treatment agency in this area in the Northeast quadrant,” Martin shared. “He petitioned the city of Denver to help create CADREC… and when he found this building, they sold him the building for $1.”
That mission — to create a place for people who had been overlooked by the system — remains the defining characteristic of CADREC today.
“CADREC has attracted people from all walks of life,” Martin said. “It doesn’t matter where you come from, what you look like — you can get help here if you want it.”
What CADREC Wants Other Providers to Know
Rodriguez and Martin agree that their model which is accessible, community-based and culturally responsive is a blueprint other providers can learn from.
“I’ve worked all over,” said Rodriguez. “It’s hard for clients to come in — but they can come over here. You see people of color working here. I have to put that in.”
Martin echoed that importance. “I like what you said about members of the community being free to share what we call experience, strength and hope,” she said. “Now, if you want to recover from the hopeless state that you’re in, we have a place.”
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