History
In early 2000, Judges Chris J. Collier and James L. Kimbler established and funded the first drug court in Medina, Ohio. This was in response to years of sentencing drug and alcohol offenders and criminalizing them for their addiction. They also noticed there was a steady stream of repeat offenders, which confirmed incarceration was not the answer to solving the issue. For over two decades the Medina County Court of Common Pleas has been actively engaged in the fight against addiction, especially opioids, which have made Ohio #2 in opioid overdoses across the country. In 2017, 4,293 people died in Ohio, more than double the US average of opioid related deaths.
In response to the need for more services in the community, the Court looked at other ways to serve this population with an approach offering long term results. In March 2018, the Recovery Center of Medina County opened with the goal of strengthening communities through supporting those in recovery. The organization quickly grew and expanded to offer a variety of resources for those in recovery, and their family and caregivers.
The Sérénité Restaurant and Culinary Institute also opened in the Spring of 2018. Working in conjunction with RCMC, we opened enrollment to anyone in the recovery community and attracted students from Medina, Wayne, Summit, Richland and Cuyahoga Counties. Sérénité provides culinary & hospitality training over the course of a six month program where students work at the restaurant learning the skills needed to begin a career in the hospitality industry.
