At Starlings, we believe healing is not a private journey, it’s a collective one. Our Peer Empowerment Mentorship (PEM) program offers a safe, compassionate space where you can reflect, express, and reclaim your story for youth and young adults who have grown up with parental substance use challenges. Rooted in healing-centered engagement and peer-support values, PEM brings together people with shared experiences so that we can listen, validate, and grow, together.
What participants have said:
FAQs about the Peer Empowerment Mentorship Program
Who is this program for?
This program is for anyone 16 and up who has grown up with the stress, silence, or stigma of a parent’s substance use, particularly those who have lived experience and:
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This program is for people who:
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are curious about connecting with others who’ve lived something similar,
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want space to understand their experiences with more clarity and compassion,
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feel ready to share their insight or support others,
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or simply want to explore what healing and leadership could look like for them.
Whether you've never talked about it before or have shared your story many times, this space is for you. Together, we’ll explore how these experiences show up in our lives, and how being in community with peers who get it can offer connection, safety, and a new way forward.
What Can I Expect From the Program?
Over 8 weeks, the Starlings Peer Empowerment Mentorship (PEM) Program brings together people with lived experience of a parent’s substance use to explore how stress and stigma have shaped our stories, in our own unique ways.
Through a mix of peer connection, self-paced learning, and creative expression, you'll unpack your experience and begin to rebuild your relationship with your story.
Together, we’ll:
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Talk honestly about how parental substance use impacts us
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Reflect on identity, meaning-making, and dreaming in the context of substance use stigma
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Learn how to write, draw, or share our stories through zines, poetry, comics, and more
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Share (or choose not to share) in ways that feel safe and empowering
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Connect with guest speakers and peers who get it
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Share our stories crafted over the 8 weeks
Whether you share your story only within the group, or use it to lead change in your family, community, or society, your voice matters here.
What You'll Gain?
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Connection to a peer community that understands what you’ve lived.
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A deeper understanding of stress, stigma, and safety, and how these experiences shape us and our families.
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Skills and confidence to reflect on and share your story in ways that feel safe and authentic.
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Peer mentorship and support from people with lived experience.
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A certificate of completion to recognize your learning and leadership.
Why This Program Matters for Youth Mental Health
Growing up with the stress, silence, or stigma of a parent’s substance use can shape how young people see themselves, relate to others, and understand safety and trust. These experiences often go unspoken, leaving many youth to carry stories that feel heavy, confusing, or isolated.
The Peer Empowerment Mentorship program creates a different way forward. Research shows that peer connection, storytelling, and belonging are powerful protective factors for youth mental health. When young people have spaces where their experiences are understood, without judgment, shame, or stigma, they are more likely to feel:
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less alone
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more confident in naming their feelings and experiences
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better able to make sense of stress and identity
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safer seeking support
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connected to community and culture
PEM brings these elements together. Through gentle learning, shared reflection, and Storytelling for Change, youth explore how stress, stigma, and safety have shaped them, and what healing, identity, and strength can look like moving forward.
This program matters because every young person deserves a space where their story is held with care, their voice matters, and their experiences are met with understanding, not silence.
Check out all peer support sessions and book one below
