For anyone who needs help in a crisis, Andrew Fortriede has some sage advice: Don’t be afraid to pick up the phone. That’s what Fortriede did on Valentine’s Day 2024 and it was the first giant step toward sobriety and reunification with his daughter, Luna.
Alcohol had been part of this single dad’s life dating back to his high school years. After the birth of his son at the tender age of 14, he turned to the fast lane of drinking and music to relive what he felt he had lost during his youth.
Time passed and Fortriede welcomed the arrival of his daughter 16 years and 16 days after the birth of his son. He had committed to change, but it wasn’t until the state Department of Child Safety intervened to remove young Luna from his home that he heeded the call for help through Arizona Families F.I.R.S.T. (Families in Recovery Succeeding Together), a community-based treatment program in partnership with Terros Health.
One dark, cold night, Fortriede’s future was brightened as he reached out to his Terros Health recovery coach to receive the strength and encouragement he needed.
After nearly 10 months of sobriety, Fortriede relapsed and was evicted from his home. Thinking he would spend the night on the streets on a chilly February evening, he purchased some whiskey. It was at that moment he grasped for help, calling his former Terros Health recovery coach.
“What better day than today to love yourself,” he remembers hearing on the other end of the line. That was the encouragement Fortriede needed to get a new lease on life, addressing not just his addiction but the source of his pain.
Fast forward more than a year and Fortriede is now guiding other dads on their recovery journeys as a father support specialist at the Family Involvement Center in Phoenix. He manages a busy caseload, teaching men grappling with substance use disorder how to be better fathers and navigate resources for help. One of his most important roles is to be a listening ear, checking in with “his dads” even for five minutes to assure them that they have what it takes to live a life of sobriety. He is also using his artistic prowess — Fortriede is a writer, painter and musician who can play “anything with strings” — to create a 13-week children’s curriculum to complement the Family Involvement Center’s program for dads.
Looking back, Fortriede feels like he’s already lived a whole life. But he looks forward to what’s ahead — using his experience to inspire others while raising a young daughter with unconditional love for her dad.