Anthony is a local business owner and is well known within Birmingham’s service industry.

Anthony joins Nichole to discuss how he has been sober from alcohol for 2.5 years while still actively working in the service industry, which historically, has had high rates of substance use.

Anthony also tells us about an initiative he started to support those working in the service industry, who are in recovery or are seeking recovery. This initiative was launched for those working the service industry to gather and discuss recovery, which is usually a unique journey for people working in hospitality and the service industry.

Join us for the first episode of The Shield featuring Cheryl Dodson, the Executive Director of the Alabama Suicide Prevention and Resource Coalition (ASPARC)!

Cheryl was featured on the popular 2017 podcast, S-Town, which followed her friend, John, who died by suicide. The podcast served as a catalyst, and Cheryl found her way into the field of suicide prevention. Since then, Cheryl has been pivotal to promoting suicide prevention in the State of Alabama by conducting QPR (Question, Persuade and Refer) trainings throughout Alabama. QPR is the mental health version of CPR, and it equips people with the skills to ask someone if they are having thoughts of suicide and how to connect them to help.

If you are interested in getting yourself or a group trained in QPR, then, please visit ASPARC’s website https://asparc.org/ or https://apctrainings.org/

If you need support, please contact 988, the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, by call or text.

Join us as we get to know APC’s new Deputy Director, Nichole Dawsey, and learn more about how she found her way into the field of prevention and how she came to APC! Also, stay tuned for a special announcement from APC’s Executive Director, Carie Wimberly.

In July 2024, Nichole Dawsey moved to Birmingham from St. Louis, Missouri. Before coming to APC, she worked in various roles at PreventEd, a prevention provider in St. Louis. Most recently, she served as PreventEd’s Executive Director for six years. Nichole shares with us her love for prevention, and her passion for working with students outside of the formal classroom setting, which she discovered while working as a teacher in Louisiana. Throughout the episode, we learn how Nichole’s professional and personal experiences led her to the prevention field.