Bolme on Peer Support and Recovery at the 2026 Summit

Some speakers bring credentials. Others bring a lived truth that makes a room quieter, more honest, and more ready to learn.

At the 2026 Summit on Behavioral Health in Energy Country, we are honored to welcome Trevor Bolme. He is a peer support specialist whose story reflects the reality many families know too well: addiction can take years, relationships, and hope. Recovery can return something even deeper than stability. It can return dignity and purpose.

For years, Trevor lived under the weight of addiction and believed he had no way out. In his own words, he thought he was “broken beyond repair,” and he did not believe he deserved redemption. Those sentences land because they are not dramatic. They are familiar. Shame often convinces people that they are beyond help. Stigma teaches communities to look away. Both are deadly.

Trevor’s path included incarceration and a cycle of despair. Then something shifted. He entered a recovery program that introduced him to SMART Recovery, an approach that helped him challenge the stories he had believed about himself. He describes it plainly: it was not only about stopping substance use. It was about learning to value himself again.

That detail matters for our region. People do not just need services. They need language that helps them believe change is possible. They need support that treats them as human beings, not as problems to manage.

As Trevor moved forward in recovery, he found a desire to give back. He joined Free Through Recovery, a program that combines peer support and case management to help people move toward wellness. Today, he works as a peer support specialist with Face It TOGETHER in Bismarck, connecting with people from all walks of life.

Peer support is powerful because it meets people where clinical language cannot always reach. Trevor explains his role simply. His job is to show people they are not alone, even when everything feels hopeless. That kind of presence can be the first crack in the wall of isolation.

One of Trevor’s proudest moments came when he helped a client secure stable housing after years of living in shelters. Housing is not a side issue in recovery. It is often the difference between rebuilding and relapsing. His story also reminds us that recovery is not only about abstinence. It is about restoring safety, stability, and self-respect.

Trevor names another truth that communities need to hear. People in recovery often feel judged or dismissed. As a peer, he can say, “I’ve been there. I understand.” That connection can change what someone believes is possible for their own life.

He also speaks to the bigger picture. Recovery is not only an individual effort. It requires communities that support and uplift people, and systems that address barriers like housing, employment, and stigma. This is exactly why the Summit exists. Not to perform concern. To strengthen the relationships, tools, and partnerships that make support real.

Trevor’s story ends with purpose. Recovery gave him his life back. More than that, it gave him a reason to keep showing up for others. He says that if he can help even one person believe in themselves again, everything he has been through is worth it.

If you have ever wondered what peer support can do, or what it looks like when someone turns pain into service, Trevor is a speaker you will want to hear.

Source: https://www.hhs.nd.gov/news/voices-impact/peer-support-trevor-bolme-recovery