Rockaway’s Sara J. Buckley Receives Con Edison's Highest Award
Con Edison Counselor Helps Employees, Retirees and Families Recover from Addiction and Rebuild Their Lives
Sara J. Buckley received the 2021 Con Edison’s Living Our Values (LOV) Award at a virtual ceremony held on October 7. This recognition is given annually to Con Edison employees who exemplify the company’s values of service, teamwork, excellence, and concern for the quality of life in their communities.
As a coordinator and substance abuse counselor, in the company’s Employee Wellness Center, Buckley is always available to help any employee, family member or retiree suffering from addiction find the path to recovery. She supports them on their journey to a happy sober life. She changes people’s lives for the better.
“Substance abuse destroys lives, families, marriages, and friendships,” she said. “One of the last things it destroys is careers. We make sure employees who come to the Wellness Center for help, have the services, information, and support networks they need to rebuild their lives and careers. We are here for them 24/7.”
“Sara is always willing to share her experience, strength and hope to assure her clients that they will be okay if they follow the path laid before them,” said John Lyons, Employee Wellness manager. “Many of Sara’s clients credit her for their recovery and many more have thanked her for setting them on the right road.”
Substance abuse counselors also help clients’ family members understand the recovery process. Counselors follow up with clients after treatment to make sure they have the support they need to meet their work and personal recovery goals.
Recovering from addiction is hard under the best of circumstances, but when it is compounded by the anxiety and isolation brought on by the pandemic it can be incapacitating.
“It’s been like a roller coaster,” Buckley recalled. “We’ve worked hard to re-build the personal relationships that were disrupted by the pandemic, first by meeting with clients virtually, and since September of last year, in person. I hope that my clients can see the positive changes in themselves and how the work that they did has transformed their lives, and the lives of those around them.”
Buckley, who is in recovery herself, credits her success in changing lives for the better to those who helped her, the “amazing” people in the Employee Wellness Center and Con Edison’s compassion for those struggling with addiction.
In addition to her work at Con Edison, Buckley is a member of a 12-step program of recovery and started a bereavement group to help parents cope with the loss of children following the loss of her 17-year-old son to a drug overdose.
She is a credentialed Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Counselor and a certified Labor Assistance Professional.
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