New York State Certified Peer Specialist
Access: Supports for Living
Brendan Reilly is a New York State Certified Peer Specialist with Access: Supports for Living, an agency in Newburgh, NY, that has supported the Hudson Valley’s families and communities for 50+ years. He has held this role since 2014 and has worked in the mental health field for 20+ years.
Reilly’s background is in criminality/mental health and forensics, as well as social justice. He is also a person in long-term recovery. After 19 years of county jails, rehabs and brief stints of homelessness, Brendan took his last drink/drug on April 1, 2004, at the age of 36. Since then, he has used his experience in the mental health field to inform and erase the stigma of mental illness.
Reilly earned an associate degree at the Orange County Community College in 2009 and a bachelor in sociology degree at the State University of New York at New Paltz, where he graduated cum laude and was voted “Sociologist of the Class of 2012.” In his spare time, he enjoys nature and hiking, as well as music, gardening and art.