Our Story

was born and raised in Perryville, MO. He attended Southeast Missouri State University and, after graduating, joined the military. Frank was injured during his first tour in Vietnam and returned to the United States. Upon returning home, he became connected to the Missouri construction industry and established Robinson Construction. At 37 years old, he and his wife, Joan, adopted Andrew Robinson.

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When Andy was 11 years old, he became involved with multiple types of drugs that he encountered while attending school. Between the ages of 11 and 32, Andy was frequently involved with the justice system. By the time he turned 30, he had been to prison once. In between sentences, the Robinson family attempted to connect Andy with multiple treatment facilities that practiced a variety of treatment methods, but nothing was working for him.

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When Andy was released from prison the second time, he realized it was time to make a change. Knowing that many treatment options had not worked for him in the past, Andy and Frank reached out to Andy’s old friend at ARCA’s Recovery House to get him connected to services.

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It was not until Frank established the connection with ARCA and Recovery House that Andy was truly able to find his way out of addiction. The transitional, supportive living model saved Andy’s life, and both he and his family are forever grateful for the program. Frank recognized the power of a life-saving treatment model for addiction and realized he could combine his passion for the veteran community with his personal experience of helping his son. In 2021, Frank Robinson approached Suneal and Percy Menzies to begin planning how to replicate ARCA’s Recovery House successes and hyper-focus them into a veteran-led, supportive living behavioral health organization.

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Knowing that this model has a strong success rate in helping men break the cycle of addiction, Frank believed that replicating the model—while tailoring all services to be veteran-specific—would be an impactful way to give back to his community. In recent years, story after story has highlighted the number of veterans who die by suicide or overdose. These reports, paired with the national “22 a day” social media campaign, influenced the creation of services specifically tailored to the needs of veterans.

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RecoVET was formed in early 2022 to support veterans living with mental health or substance use disorders. The overarching strategic goal is to provide a haven for veterans who need assistance accessing care, housing, and employment. By creating strong linkages across the social determinants of health, RecoVET is well-positioned to become a leader in veteran behavioral health care in the St. Louis area. RecoVET is the only transitional living support facility specifically tailored for veterans in the St. Louis metro area.

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Some additional statistics that fuel our mission:

• Veterans who have a substance use disorder (SUD) are three to four times more likely to be diagnosed with depression and/or PTSD.¹ ²

• Nearly three-quarters of all veterans experiencing homelessness have a substance use disorder.¹

• Only 35% of veterans treated for opioid use disorder at the VA receive medication-assisted treatment.¹

• Alcohol is the primary substance for veterans entering treatment centers, with men being twice as likely to have a diagnosed alcohol use disorder (AUD) as women.¹ ²

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Veterans are among the groups most likely to misuse substances due to multiple contributing factors, including:

• Multiple deployments and the added stress of being separated from civilian life

• Combat exposure, PTSD, depression, anxiety, and other mental health conditions that may lead to self-medication

• Military-related injuries and the misuse of over-the-counter or prescribed pain medications to manage combat-related or chronic pain

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References

¹ National Institute on Drug Abuse. (2019, October). Substance Use and Military Life DrugFacts.
² Teeters, J.B., Lancaster, C.L., Brown, D.G., & Back, S.E. (2017). Substance use disorders in military veterans: Prevalence and treatment challenges. Substance Abuse and Rehabilitation, 8, 69–77.

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