LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Chimas Houston travels around Louisville, working to connect anyone who might need help with addiction or their mental health with resources.  

Wednesday morning he handed out care kits and business cards outside Franciscan Kitchen on South Preston Street. 

Starting this week, Houston is doing outreach from the “Rolling Recovery” van with the nonprofit Seeds of New Leaf. 

The van is stocked with supplies like fentanyl test strips, menstrual products and the overdose-reversing drug Narcan. 

“A lot of people don’t want to come to the facilities to get help,” said Houston. “I figure, if we come to them, you know, it will be a lot easier for them to get to us. Instead of waiting until they come to us, we’ll go out to them.”

Houston has been in recovery for nearly 14 months. 

“I was addicted to alcohol and drugs for years,” Houston told Spectrum News 1. “I used it to help fight my mental illness and the older I got, the harder it was for me to control. I knew that I needed to get help because I was losing a lot of loved ones and I was hurting a lot of those who were close to me.”

Wednesday is International Overdose Awareness Day and too many are losing loved ones, said Houston. 

“The reality right now is like, we have saying that, ‘The streets are winning,’ because daily, you have people dying of drug overdose and opioid overdose and if we don’t get out here to try to you know, fight it, then the streets will definitely win.”

Houston feels it’s his duty to help others get the support he received. 

“It’s a sad thing, but it’s possible,” said Houston. “You can get help out here.”

You can find him with the Rolling Recovery van six days a week. 

The phone number for the van is 502-528-4604.

If you would like to get involved with Seeds of New Leaf, you can email rollingrecovery@seedsofnewleaf.com.