Editor's note: This story is part of Southwest Michigan's Second Wave's On the Ground Kalamazoo series.

KALAMAZOO, MI — It's a very precarious point in someone's life when they realize they need help.

They're addicted to a substance that's ruining their life, but they've found that motivation to get to recovery.

If they drive themselves, call a cab or an Uber, or have a friend or family member drive them, or they just can't get a ride, there could be any moment where they waver.

It would be best if they had a driver who'd say, "I was in your shoes. I know what you're going through. It's time to go."

Gadson Chris Pompey faced that moment himself, once. So he formed RSL Transportation LLC, a pilot program that he hopes can be an Uber for people looking for a ride to recovery.

RSL Transportation is a pilot program working with Community Healing Centers. Its goal is to get safe non-medical, recovery-oriented transportation for people seeking help. Once a person is in recovery, the service is still available to clients with rides to appointments.

Gadson Chris Pompey launched RSL Transportation to help people in recovery get to rehab or treatment with support from drivers who have been there.

"I'm in recovery myself. I have over 20-some years being clean and sober from addiction to heroin," Pompey, founder of RSL Transportation, says.

"So I thought about when someone needs to get to treatment or admits that they have a problem, and says that they want help -- sometimes that's a thought that happens within seconds. And if they say they're ready to go, they're ready to go."

Pompey is also the founder and CEO of Reach Sober Living, a non-profit that operates recovery houses in Kalamazoo.

Having a stable home is essential for one to transition out of recovery, he knows. But Pompey has also thought about that first step, the trip to get treatment.

"A lot of times, the lack of community that an addict has because of the wreckage of their past, or what they're going through, a lot of times the immediate transportation isn't available," he says.

"So, I was sitting down one day and just thought to myself, if somebody wanted to go to drug treatment right now, today, who's gonna take them?"

Peer drivers

RSL drivers "are peer support specialists and recovery coaches, certified," Pompey says. They help clients who "may be apprehensive about going to treatment" stay on track.

"When a client makes the courageous decision to seek help for their addiction, it is critical that they receive the necessary support without delay," Tawanda Clarke, Clinical Director, of Inpatient Residential Services at Community Healing Centers, says.

The essential players in this pilot service are RSL's peer drivers. "These drivers bring a unique understanding of recovery through their own lived experiences, which helps clients feel safe, understood, and free from judgment as they take transformative steps toward recovery," Clarke says.

There are transportation hazards on the road to recovery, Clarke says. "For example, some clients reported being offered substances by cab drivers or encountering drug-related activity at bus stops, undermining their efforts to maintain sobriety."

RSL offers door-to-door service, accompanies clients as they enter clinics, and supports them through their intake process. "This comprehensive approach fosters safety, dignity, and trust during this critical time," she says.

Pompey told of a recent situation with a person who was having second thoughts about going into recovery.

"When the driver got there, the individual was filled with fear." he says. "And my driver was able to de-escalate the situation and communicate to the individual with empathy that all would be well because he remembered all the times that he was in the same situation and how many times he's been in treatment and the feeling he had when he had to go to treatment."

An Uber driver isn't going to be able to do that, nor have the patience to wait while the person makes up their mind to go. 

"This particular situation took place over almost an hour and a half," Pompey says. "It made a world of difference for that individual, and it made them feel safe and ensured them that all would be well."

RSL is centered in Kalamazoo, but its drivers have gone as far as Detroit, Grand Rapids, Benton Harbor, Battle Creek, Muskegon, and even Petoskey when needed.

During the pilot, RSL charges $1.86 a mile, for unlimited miles. They hope to have an app, similar to Uber's, this summer. Once everything is in place, Pompey hopes to provide rides to people who might not have the funds to pay. 

"Funds are limited," he says. "That's the reason why we're doing the pilot program with the Community Healing Center." With the Center, "we can beta test and get the proper data that we need to ensure that we roll this out properly."

A long ride

Pompey knows what these trips are like since he's also a driver. "We get to spend a lot of time with these individuals in the car. Sometimes it's just a ride over to the Family Health Center and back to treatment."

Other times it's a long ride with someone in an anxious state. Some clients need to leave long-term treatment to go to an outside appointment, and then return to the center, Pompey says.

"Sometimes individuals don't want to return. But because of the drivers, you have someone that you can share those thoughts with, opposed to somebody just dropping you off and then coming back and picking you up."

An RSL app is expected to be released by early spring. For more information and updates, email RSL Transportation.