resilience2reform is LIVE!

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Today is a very, very happy day. Our website, resilience2reform is live and underway!!

In January we told you guys about our next new adventure and we’ve been working our booties off behind the scenes over the past few months building this new brand and the site. There is so much that goes into brand development: the overall concept, big goals and dreams, strategy, and even colors, fonts, logos. And working with Noah in quick 15-minute, monitored phone conversations was challenging to say the least. It was the work of love and real-life (which means it was messy and challenging and it matters) and now we are excited to bring you on this journey with us!

resilience2reform is a platform that will give a voice to anyone going through change and transition whether simple or complex, who wants to improve their situation. This is a safe place, free of judgment, where you are not alone. Whether you are in a hard place or someone you love is, come here for guidance, support, and hope.

Noah says that even when he was at the depths of his addiction, he knew he could do better. He knew he wanted to stop, but he couldn’t. He didn’t know how or where to start. resilience2reform is where to start.

“I had many options for which way I could turn, but they all seemed unbearable at the time…shameful, I guess. I am not one that wants to drag people to change because the majority of the time it’s time wasted, but I want the information to be available for when the person is ready.”
– Noah Bergland

When Jamie and I went to see Noah last year, he said he wanted to do something bigger than contributing posts to our company website. We’d been receiving all these stories that were coming in, some from complete strangers. All these people were going down the same path and felt lost. They didn’t know what to do or who to talk to. There were also countless messages with sad endings of returning to addiction and death. Noah wanted to make a place for all of these stories and all of these people. 

After this conversation with Noah, Jamie and I talked about what this new platform might look and feel like. Once we got home, we got to work building this new space.

The past 10 years have been a wild ride for Noah, our whole family, and everyone who knows him. Noah’s choices didn’t just affect him, they affected all of us.

Over the past almost seven years there is a part of me that has been incarcerated as well. I never thought a prison would be my new vacation destination. I never thought I would raise my babies to get to know their uncle Noah in one. Watching my brother slowly fade away from us, make bad decisions, get involved with the wrong crowds, be convicted, and incarcerated has been heart-wrenching and deeply painful. And while I wouldn’t wish it on anyone, so much good has come because of it. I have also grown so much as a person. I am a more compassionate, knowledgeable, humble, understanding, and sympathetic person because of this journey with Noah.

After years of not being able to talk or write about my brother’s incarceration, in 2017 I wrote a letter, To my Greyson, my Promise to You, about what I promised to do based on my experience with Noah. This first letter led to many more letters, and then Noah and I began to share them on our company’s blog…and then something magical happened. You, our readers, friends, strangers, all kinds of people started sharing their own stories with us.

We’re all on our own journey but one thing I know is, when things get tough, we need to lean into each other to get through.

As we posted to every page of the new website…

“Courage starts with showing up and letting ourselves be seen. Owning our story can be hard but not nearly as difficult as spending our lives running from it. Embracing our vulnerabilities is risky but not nearly as dangerous as giving up on love and belonging and joy—the experiences that make us the most vulnerable. Only when we are brave enough to explore the darkness will we discover the infinite power of our light.” – Brené Brown

Every time I visit Noah, I ask about every inmate in the room. I’m curious about what they are in for, their family support, if they’re guilty, have any regrets, kids, are they nice or scary. But the one thing I am always most interested in is, when did it start? What made them start making those decisions and what had led them to prison? So these stories are part of resilience2reform, too. 

Telling our stories can save us. We want to share not just Noah’s story but many others, too. Exploring the darkness by shining our light is what resilience2reform is about. 

When I faced the truth about where my life had turned because of the choices my brother made, everything changed for me. Noah’s real and raw stories are not easy to read but I know that writing and sharing them helped him to heal. No more shame, no more embarrassment, no more secrets…now this is who we are.

Let’s explore the darkness with our light together.

Lots more goodness to come.
XO, 
the r2r crew!