SAARA of Virginia

What SAARA of Virginia does

SAARA of Virginia (legal name: Substance Abuse and Addiction Recovery Alliance of Virginia) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit headquartered at 530 East Main Street, Suite 701, Richmond, Virginia. Founded in 1995 and celebrating its 30th anniversary in 2025, the organization operates statewide as an advocacy, education, and direct-support body for individuals, families, and communities affected by substance use disorders (SUD) and addiction. Its primary constituents are people in recovery and their families, with a secondary segment of Certified Peer Recovery Specialists (CPRS) and National Certified Peer Recovery Support Specialists (NCPRSS) seeking leadership development. SAARA holds consecutive-year GuideStar Platinum and Candid Gold Seals of Transparency (2026), reflecting mature nonprofit governance and donor accountability standards.

SAARA delivers its mission through three coordinated service lines plus a flagship program. Advocacy Services connect individuals with Virginia legislators and provide bill tracking, pre-composed Action Alerts, and the Voices For Recovery story-collection platform for influencing General Assembly sessions. Educational Resources and Training comprise downloadable toolkits, drug-facts content, and structured trainings on recovery and harm reduction. Support Services include a warmline, recovery groups, and community outreach. The flagship Recovery Leadership Academy is a year-long intensive leadership development program (now in its 6th cohort as of September 2025) that combines leadership assessments, mentorship, and capstone projects for CPRS/NCPRSS practitioners. Distribution is primarily through a self-serve website platform (www.saara.org), email newsletter, and direct community engagement across Virginia.

The business model is donation- and contribution-funded, with services provided free of charge to beneficiaries. There is no disclosed revenue, no pricing model, and no parent company, private equity, or venture capital ownership; the organization is governed independently by a board of directors. Headcount is in the 11-50 range, and operating geography is restricted to Virginia. SAARA generates programmatic momentum through events (Recovery Advocacy Day, Recovery Town Halls, the annual Voices For Recovery Luncheon and Awards) and through strategic partnerships, including a 2025 co-development alliance with the Virginia Association of Addiction Professionals. There are no proprietary technology platforms, AI/ML capabilities, or API/SDK offerings disclosed in the source material.

Name

SAARA of Virginia

Legal name

Substance Abuse and Addiction Recovery Alliance of Virginia

Website

https://saara.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1995

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

SAARA of Virginia is a Richmond-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit delivering statewide advocacy, education, and support services for individuals and families affected by substance use disorders, including the flagship Recovery Leadership Academy for peer recovery specialists.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Substance Use Disorder Recovery Advocacy

NAICS

Other Individual and Family Services (624190), Voluntary Health Organizations (813212)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYHLAFACAN

Peer Support, Recovery Coaching & Sober Living Services

Healthcare & Life Sciences/Healthcare Providers & Systems/Behavioral Health & Substance Use Treatment

SECONDARYBPAGACAD

Mental Health & Crisis Support Services

Business & Public Services/Nonprofit, NGO & Social Services/Health & Medical Nonprofits

Keywords

• Addiction recovery services
• Substance use disorder support
• Recovery advocacy
• Peer recovery training
• Harm reduction education

Headquarters

HQ city

Richmond

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations and Contributions: SAARA operates primarily through donations and charitable contributions from individuals and organizations supporting substance use disorder recovery advocacy and education.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

SAARA of Virginia provides advocacy, education, and direct support services for individuals, families, and communities affected by substance use disorders (SUD) and addiction across the Commonwealth of Virginia. The organization connects individuals with legislators, tracks recovery-related legislation, delivers training programs and educational toolkits, runs the flagship Recovery Leadership Academy for Certified Peer Recovery Specialists, and operates support channels including a warmline, recovery groups, and outreach services. All core programs are offered free of charge to the recovery community.

Product overview

SAARA of Virginia is a statewide nonprofit organization providing advocacy, education, and support services for individuals and families affected by substance use disorders. The organization offers a coordinated suite of services including advocacy resources (legislator connection, bill tracking), educational programs (training, toolkits, resources), and support services (warmline, recovery groups, outreach). The flagship program is the Recovery Leadership Academy, a year-long leadership development initiative for Certified Peer Recovery Specialists. The organization also facilitates community engagement through Action Alerts and the Voices For Recovery initiative.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Advocacy Services Statewide advocacy program that connects individuals and families affected by substance use disorders with Virginia legislators, enables bill tracking on recovery-related legislation, provides pre-composed action alerts, and offers advocacy resources supporting policy engagement on substance use disorder issues.
• Educational Resources and Training Education program offering training programs, drug facts information, downloadable toolkits, and educational materials to support recovery and harm reduction efforts for individuals, families, and community members affected by substance use disorders.
• Support Services Direct support services including warmline support, recovery groups, and outreach programs for individuals and families affected by substance use disorders across Virginia.
• Recovery Leadership Academy Intensive year-long leadership development program for Certified Peer Recovery Specialists (CPRS) and National Certified Peer Recovery Support Specialists (NCPRSS), featuring leadership assessments, mentorship, and capstone projects designed to develop certified peer recovery professionals into community leaders.

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Virginia Association of Addiction ProfessionalscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 17 September 2025SAARA of Virginia and the Virginia Association of Addiction Professionals are partnering to host a Recovery Town Hall—a space for open dialogue between policy makers and the recovery community. This partnership combines SAARA's 30 years of recovery advocacy with VAAP's professional addiction treatment expertise to amplify the recovery community's voice in Virginia policy discussions.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Caron Treatment Centers: Established addiction treatment provider operating residential and outpatient programs plus education and advocacy. Comparable in addressing SUD through education and treatment, but a much larger clinical incumbent rather than a community-led nonprofit.
• SMART Recovery: Larger national organization providing science-based mutual support groups and training for addiction recovery. Comparable in peer support mission, but distributes primarily through self-help group meetings and self-directed tools rather than legislative advocacy.
• National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence (NCADD): Long-established national advocacy network addressing alcoholism and drug dependence through public education and policy advocacy. Comparable in mission and advocacy focus, but operates a broader affiliate network spanning multiple states versus SAARA's single-state focus.

Direct peers

• Shatterproof: National nonprofit focused on ending addiction, combining policy advocacy, public education, and support resources. Highly comparable as a peer-led nonprofit addressing substance use disorders through advocacy, training, and community mobilization, though operating at significantly greater national scale.
• Young People in Recovery: National nonprofit building recovery capital for young people in or seeking recovery, led by peers with lived experience. Closely comparable peer-led, community-driven model emphasizing leadership development among recovery specialists, mirroring SAARA's Recovery Leadership Academy.
• Partnership to End Addiction: National nonprofit supporting families impacted by substance use through education, advocacy, and peer support resources. Comparable as a nonprofit offering education, support services (helpline), and policy advocacy for families affected by addiction.
• Faces & Voices of Recovery: National recovery advocacy organization mobilizing people in recovery to drive policy change and public awareness. Directly comparable mission to SAARA's advocacy pillar with similar community-led GTM motion centered on recovery community engagement and legislative action.
• National Harm Reduction Coalition: National nonprofit promoting harm reduction policies and practices for people who use drugs. Highly comparable in advocacy and education pillars, with overlapping harm reduction framing that complements SAARA's educational toolkit offerings.

Regional players

• RIZE Massachusetts: Statewide foundation in Massachusetts funding opioid use disorder research, treatment access, and policy. Closely comparable state-bounded advocacy-and-grantmaking model, with a peer funder role analogous to SAARA's Virginia recovery ecosystem position.
• Alcohol & Drug Abuse Prevention Association of Pennsylvania: Pennsylvania-based statewide association supporting substance use disorder prevention, treatment, and recovery advocacy. Comparable single-state scope and focus on the recovery continuum, serving a different geography but a structurally similar advocacy-and-education role.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/SAARAofVA
• Facebookfacebook.com/SAARAofVA
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/saaraofva

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about SAARA of Virginia