LB Burkhalter’s Mission to Support Those in Recovery

One of them was Spectrum General Contractors, her partner’s former employer. Their compassion left an imprint and helped inspire her advocacy to bring naloxone, harm reduction, and real conversation to the trades.

“Recovery belongs everywhere, including construction sites,” LB says. “No one should have to choose between their job and their healing.”

LB, short for Laura Beth, uses her own recovery journey as a catalyst for her advocacy and the passion she feels for this work. 

And, LB Burkhalter doesn’t just believe in second chances—she lives one.

From the Beginning…

“Even as a child, I remember feeling restless, irritable, and discontent,” she says. A traumatic event at age 9 and early alcohol exposure lit a fuse. By 12, LB was using drugs daily. Cocaine and meth came first. Then, opioids followed and ruled her life for a decade.

“I call it the perfect storm,” she says. “Addiction, trauma, pain. And no one really talked about it.”

Until one day, everything stopped.

She overdosed on fentanyl. Someone administered naloxone. And for LB, that single moment created an entirely new trajectory.

“Being revived didn’t just save my life,” she says. “It gave me purpose.”

Recovered Humans: Where Women Rebuild

That purpose drove LB to become a safe space for women going through their own journey of recovery. 

“We don’t just give women a place to stay. We give them community, structure, and the space to come alive again,” LB says.

Since 2021, LB’s efforts have supported 184 women, each carrying their own story, scars, and strength. “They are the heartbeat of this work,” she adds. “This isn’t a job. It’s sacred.”

Hope After Overdose

For LB, participating in events like International Overdose Awareness Day isn’t optional, but an act of gratitude.

“Overdose isn’t the end,” she says. “It can be the beginning if we don’t give up on people.”

Today, she’s a mother, a founder, a fierce advocate, and the woman behind a safe space that’s helped more than 180 women rebuild their lives.

LB doesn’t flinch at the truth. She honors her pain without letting it define her. When she says recovery is possible, she isn’t guessing. She’s proof.

Every naloxone kit placed, every recovery-friendly workplace created, every life revived is one more chance for someone to start again.

“Not everyone gets a second chance,” she says. “But when someone does, we better make sure there’s a path waiting for them.”

On a day we remember those we lost, LB helps us remember those who lived.