Meet The Team

Brad Durkin - Chair

Brad is a man in long-term recovery, and a professional in the addiction and mental health field with an adventurous spirit and a lifelong love for exploration. During his battle with addiction, many of those joys that fulfilled him, were lost for a time. After finding sobriety, Brad began to reconnect with his passion for nature, recreation, and exploration.

The outdoors, adventure, and meaningful passions played a major role in his recovery and in rebuilding his spirit. He believes the world has so much beauty to offer and feels most centered when he is out exploring it.

For Brad, The Recovery Explorers Club is a way to give back what was once given to him. Creating opportunities for others to experience connection, adventure, and life-building moments in recovery is one of the greatest rewards of his journey.

Rob Yurisko, MSSA, LISW-S, LICDC-CS - Secretary

Rob Yurisko is a person in long-term recovery whose own treatment experience was profoundly influenced by adventure therapy. The opportunities for challenge, exploration, and connection left a lasting impact on his recovery journey.

Rob serves as Clinical Director at House of Hope for Recovery, teaches social work at the university level, and maintains a small private psychotherapy practice. Throughout his career, he has pursued specialized training in adventure therapy, incorporates adventure-based interventions into his clinical work, and has helped expand adventure therapy programming within addiction treatment.

Rob believes adventure, exploration, and meaningful experiences are essential components of recovery. He was excited to join the Recovery Explorers Club board because he believes adventure is an important form of recovery capital—helping people build confidence, connection, resilience, and a recovery that is both sustainable and fulfilling.

Sam Kretschmer - Treasurer

Sam Kretschmer is the Treasurer of The Recovery Explorers Club (TREC) and a passionate advocate for recovery, community, and the healing power of the outdoors. With 17 years of continuous sobriety, Sam believes recovery is about far more than abstaining from drugs and alcohol—it's about building a life filled with purpose, connection, adventure, and joy.

An avid rock climber and outdoor enthusiast, Sam has experienced firsthand how nature can restore perspective, build resilience, and create space for personal growth. Those experiences, combined with the relationships he has built in recovery, inspired him to join The Recovery Explorers Club.

Sam's vision, especially those new to recovery—that life doesn't end when addiction does. It begins. Through hiking, climbing, camping, paddling, and other outdoor adventures, TREC creates opportunities for people to build lasting friendships, discover new passions, and experience the incredible life that recovery can offer.

For Sam, giving back is an essential part of recovery. He is committed to helping others find the same hope, freedom, and sense of belonging that were freely given to him. He believes some of life's greatest lessons are learned on the trail, at the base of a climbing route, around a campfire, or alongside others who understand the journey.

His hope is that everyone who joins The Recovery Explorers Club comes to see what he has found over the past 17 years: recovery is not simply about surviving—it's about thriving, exploring, and discovering the beauty in nature, in community, and in ourselves.

Tyler Wise - Board Member

Tyler is a person in long-term recovery whose early sobriety was transformed by adventure, exploration, and the outdoors. After years of believing that fun and connection were only possible through drugs and alcohol, he discovered that cliff jumping, hiking, camping, and exploring nature with other people in recovery offered something even more meaningful—a genuine sense of freedom, belonging, and purpose.

Tyler runs a small construction business and is pursuing a degree in social work with the goal of helping disadvantaged youth and individuals affected by substance use disorder. As a single father, he understands the importance of building a healthy, meaningful life that extends beyond simply staying sober.

Tyler is grateful to be a part of the Recovery Explorers Club because he believes recovery should be lived, not just maintained. He hopes to provide opportunities for people in recovery to discover new passions, build lasting friendships, and experience firsthand that a joyful, adventurous life without drugs or alcohol is possible.

Cole DuBose - Board Member

Cole DuBose is a person in long-term recovery whose early connection to the outdoors became an important part of his recovery journey. Having grown up with outdoor activities, Cole found that adventure, time outside, and meaningful experiences helped him rediscover the beauty of life after substance use and build a deeper appreciation for recovery.