Darrell Mitchell is an accomplished business professional. Over the last several years, Darrell has led and impacted change in the recovery residence field at the state and national levels. He is the Founder of the Indiana Affiliation of Recovery Residences (INARR) and serves as the Vice-President of the National Alliance for Recovery Residences (NARR). In 2017, Darrell was instrumental in the drafting and passing of legislation that placed Recovery Housing standards into Indiana Law. Darrell studied Public Relations, and Marketing at Purdue University has a Bachelor of Science in Addictions Counseling and a Master of Business Administration degree from Indiana Wesleyan University.
Darrell did not plan a career in healthcare, behavioral health, or addiction treatment. Fortunately, with the help of others, Mitchell overcame addiction and has been a person in long-term recovery for many years. Experiencing the miracle of recovery in his own life inspired pursuing a new professional path of service to those with mental illness and substance use disorders. Mitchell serves on local, state, and national recovery and mental health boards and committees and speaks at regional and national conferences and events.
In 2016, Mental Health America of Indiana presented Darrell with the "Heroes for Recovery Consumer Advocate Award." In 2018, he was honored with the prestigious "Leadership Award" by the Indiana Housing & Community Development and the Indiana Affordable Housing Council.
In 2019 the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture asked Darrell to author a paper for "The Rural Community Action Guide." The RCAG has been distributed nationally to equip rural leaders with critical information from lessons learned from the frontlines of prevention, treatment, and recovery in rural America. In January 2020, Darrell was invited to the White House to attend ONDCP's launch of the Rural Community Action Guide and to meet with senior leaders.
Mitchell visits White House in fight against addiction.
Darrell serves as Vice President of Recovery Communities with Aspire Indiana Health, overseeing the integration of recovery principles and practices across Aspire's healthcare system, including Substance Use Disorder resident and recovery facilities, medical, outpatient behavioral health, housing, and employment services. Darrell amplifies the voice of lived experience of the populations served by Aspire and within local, state, and national communities while also serving as the Executive Director of Progress House.
Memberships:
Darrell and his wife Tracey live in Hamilton County and have two adult children, four crazy dogs, and two fed up cats. Their home is affectionately referred to as "The Mitchell Zoo".
As Medical Director of Primary Care, Dr. Jonathan Butler oversees all of Aspire Indiana Health's primary care operations at its Central Indiana clinics and other facilities.
Butler directs the supervision of medical practitioners providing direct care and give clinical/administrative support to Aspire’s Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHC) in Marion, Hamilton, Madison and Boone counties. He works in conjunction with Dr. Betsy Rosiek, Medical Director, Psychiatry, and the rest of the leadership team in supporting the mission of Aspire to provide fully integrated medical, psychiatric and addiction care to patients.
Dr. Butler joined Aspire in July 2020 with a deep background in healthcare administration and innovation. Immediately prior he held the position of Regional Medical Director of Limestone Health, which runs methadone maintenance programs in Lafayette and Bloomington, Ind.
Previously Butler held roles as a direct care or staff physician, chief medical officer and medical director. He also was an adjunct professor at Vanderbilt University’s Peabody College of Education and Human Development, specializing in addictions and counseling.
Butler earned his bachelor’s degree in inorganic chemistry from David Lipscomb University and his medical degree from the University of Tennessee College of Medicine, serving his residency at St. Francis Hospital in Memphis. He also has a master's degree in education from Peabody College.
He is certified by the American Board of Family Medicine and the American Board of Addiction Medicine, and is a member of the American Academy of Family Practice and the American Society of Addiction Medicine.
After working for a large tertiary health system upon completing nursing school, Syd worked for five years as a hospice nurse with Visiting Nurse Service. It was during this time that she saw a different side of healthcare — many times venturing into the homes of the poor, seeing the need for education and feeling the appreciation from those who are often overlooked, but greatly in need of compassion and attention. Since then, she has been an advocate for the underserved, the underinsured and the undereducated. Syd graduated as a nurse practitioner in 1993 and has been providing primary healthcare to those in need ever since. She has always strived to start new programs and develop a delivery system that encourages engagement of the underserved patients she cares for.
In addition to her clinical work, her administrative roles have included oversight for the development of new medical offices, employer-based clinics, school nurse programs, wellness initiatives for the employer and community, population management strategies, occupational health and work related injury programs, and a community health clinic that catered to the underserved of Hamilton County. Continuing her administrative education included receiving a MBA from Butler University in 2011 with a focus on servant leadership.
The responsibilities of the administrative side of healthcare never diminished Syd's passion for patient care or developing programs to enhance patient’s lives and the communities where they live and work. Instead, they provided a platform to address, from an organizational level, the needs of the whole patient, both medical and behavioral. Having been associated with Aspire for more than 10 years, Syd knew the challenges that faced the organization as they too had a quest to care for the whole person — or the total healthcare of the individual — integrating medical care into the already established behavioral health program. She states “All of my working career has prepared me for this role and I can’t think of a better organization to be in partnership with to continue my life’s work.” As an employee of Aspire Indiana Health, she has continued her mission of providing healthcare services to the underserved, with many clients having substance abuse and serious mental illness.
Positions and Honors:
Before accepting the position of COO for the integrated Aspire program, Syd served as a board director for Aspire Indiana for nine years, resigning in 2015. She currently serves on the board for the Kristen EVE Foundation. She has had past affiliations with Hamilton Centers, Advisory Board member for Promising Futures and BABE Store. In 2010, Syd was honored with the State Award for Excellence from the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners and in 2011, received the Distinguished Community Leader award. The Legacy Fund of Hamilton County has recognized and awarded monetary rewards to Ehmke on behalf of the contributions the Riverview Community Health Clinic had made to the health of the community.
Selected Peer-reviewed Publications:
Co-author “Nursing Theorists and Their Work”
Syd and her husband Steve, have three grown children, one grandchild, and a “world just waiting to be traveled.”
Manager of Residential Addiction Services
Medical Assistant
Bill Jump
Front Desk Associate
Food Service Worker
Support Associate
Practice Manager
Residential Recovery Associate
Zach Rogers
Residential Recovery
Therapist
Bennie Williamson
Addictions Recovery Coach
