Recent Positively West Virginia guest, Sharon Travis, CEO of Serenity Hills Life Center, went from suffering from chronic illness in and out of wheelchairs to owning her recovery retreat for women suffering from addiction.
Sharon said, “I went from volunteering at a church to CEO, and it didn’t phase me a bit.”
It wasn’t until Sharon hit her lowest low, wondering if she would make it through, that she found her passion. The Christian nurse who helped her through this time sparked a passion in Sharon that became a full blaze in a short time. Her mission work began in a hospital setting, visiting patients who had lost hope and were quickly declining. After a short time of her regular visits, Sharon started to see miracles happening all around her, inspiring an entirely new dream — the Serenity Hills Life Center.
Through her work with hospital patients, Sharon developed a glowing reputation as a helper and healer. She started working with outpatient women who were recovering from addiction but quickly noticed the holes in the system causing some significant gaps in recovery. At one point, Sharon had five different people living in her home because housing was so unavailable. To solve these issues, Sharon took housing matters into her own hands.
Sharon was introduced to a local priest who knew that the church was selling a large piece of land in Wheeling, and she knew that it would be the perfect place to start her recovery center. After months of obstacles and doubt, she finally won the bid for the land where Serenity Hills Life Center stands today.
Now Sharon spends her days working with women to help them find joy in sobriety. Each day she watches women regain their identity in a newfound way through strength and growth. Her programs help women recovering from addictions and mothers regain confidence and develop skills to have a healthy, happy life.
Sharon tells her clients, “I was a woman in a wheelchair, but now I’m the CEO of a company, and you can do that too.”
For Sharon, the biggest challenge so far has been struggling to keep her doors open through the pandemic. She experienced financial loss, COVID outbreaks and difficulty serving people through regulations. However, she pushed through and is still going strong, helping women and families get through these struggles and changing lives all over the state.
Sharon attributes her success to her hope, faith and tenacity. She said, Every day, Sharon learns something new and helps the women around her become even better versions of themselves. She says that if you have hope, vision, belief and faith, you can have just as much success as she enjoys today.
Visit https://www.serenityhillslifecenter.org/ to learn more.
Listen to Sharon’s whole podcast here: https://positivelywv.com/podcast/episode-163-sharon-travis-serenity-hills-life-center/
PWV QUICK BITS | SHARON TRAVIS
- RECOMMENDED RESOURCE: Faith
- RECOMMENDED BOOK: N/A
- PIECE OF ADVICE: “Don’t take “no” as a route you have to take. Sometimes those are just obstacles, not stop signs.”