On Our Own

What On Our Own does

On Our Own is a Charlottesville, Virginia-based nonprofit peer recovery center founded in 1990 that provides free peer support, self-help, education, advocacy, and referral services to adults experiencing challenges with mental health, substance use, or trauma. The organization serves adults across Charlottesville, Albemarle, Nelson, Greene, Fluvanna, and Louisa counties, offering daily in-person support groups at its historic yellow house at 123 4th Street NW and virtual sessions via Zoom. All staff and volunteers share lived experience with the issues they support, which is the foundation of the organization's differentiation and accessibility model.

The core service portfolio includes peer support groups (covering topics such as SMART Recovery, creative writing, recovery through music, LGBTQIA+ support, living skills, and goal-setting), the Harm Reduction Project (which distributed 4,100 doses of Narcan in its first year across six counties), and a Peer Recovery Specialist (PRS) Internship Program that provides 500 hours toward Virginia DBHDS PRS certification. The underlying technology is minimal: a Squarespace website, a public Google Calendar with embedded Zoom links, and direct in-person delivery. No mobile app, API, or proprietary software platform is in use.

The organization's revenue model is entirely donation- and grant-funded; all services are free at the point of delivery with no ID or insurance required. Funding sources include the Anne and Gene Worrell Foundation, Sentara Martha Jefferson Hospital Foundation, Charlottesville Area Community Foundation, Ivy Creek Foundation, the City of Charlottesville, Albemarle County, and other community donors. Strategic referral partnerships with Region Ten Community Services Board, PATH, and Offender Aid & Restoration route members into the program. The organization is small (1-10 employees), operates as a single-site community nonprofit, and is governed by a volunteer board of directors.

Name

On Our Own

Legal name

On Our Own

Website

https://onourowncville.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1990

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

On Our Own is a Charlottesville, Virginia nonprofit founded in 1990 that provides free, peer-led support groups, harm reduction services, and a PRS internship program to adults facing mental health, substance use, or trauma challenges across six Virginia counties.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Peer Recovery and Mental Health Support Services

NAICS

Outpatient Mental Health and Substance Abuse Centers (621420), Other Individual and Family Services (624190)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300), Services-Health Services (8000)

akta.pro primary industry

Peer Support, Recovery Coaching & Sober Living Services (HLAFACAN)

akta.pro secondary industries

Substance Use Recovery & Harm Reduction Support Services (BPAGAEAO), Mental Health & Crisis Support Services (BPAGACAD)

Keywords

• Peer support services
• Mental health recovery
• Substance use support
• Harm reduction outreach
• Community recovery programs

Headquarters

HQ city

Charlottesville

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations and Grants: Funded by donors, foundations, and community support. Services are provided free of charge to all community members.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

On Our Own is a nonprofit peer recovery center that provides free peer support groups, harm reduction outreach (including Narcan distribution), and a Peer Recovery Specialist internship program for adults experiencing mental health challenges, substance use, or trauma in the Charlottesville, Virginia region. All services are delivered at no cost, with no ID or insurance required, through in-person meetings at the organization's yellow house facility in Charlottesville and virtual meetings via Zoom.

Product overview

On Our Own is a non-profit peer support organization offering free community-based services to adults experiencing challenges with mental health, substance use, or trauma. The organization operates as a single unified service model centered on peer-to-peer support, providing multiple support groups (Peer Support, SMART Recovery, Creative Writing, Recovery Through Music, Queer Support, and others), harm reduction outreach (distributing Narcan and supplies), and a PRS internship program. All services are provided free of charge and are accessible both in-person at their Charlottesville location and virtually via Zoom.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Peer Support Groups Free peer-led support groups for adults facing mental health challenges, substance use, or trauma. Groups are offered both in-person at the yellow house and virtually via Zoom, and include daily peer support, creative writing, recovery through music, living skills, LGBTQIA+ support, games, and goal-setting.
• Harm Reduction Project Community outreach program distributing Narcan (Naloxone) kits and harm reduction supplies across Charlottesville, Albemarle, Nelson, Greene, Fluvanna, and Louisa counties, delivered through street outreach by the Harm Reduction Outreach Coordinator.
• Peer Recovery Specialist (PRS) Internship Program Volunteer, unpaid internship program at the Charlottesville, VA location (Monday–Friday, 9am to 5pm) providing 500 hours toward Virginia PRS Certification. Interns assist with peer recovery groups, harm reduction, and street outreach under supervision of the Program Supervisor and Peer Recovery Specialists.
• SMART Recovery Meetings Self-empowering, science-based addiction recovery meetings guided by trained peers, offered as an alternative to 12-step programs for individuals moving from addictive behaviors toward positive self-regard.

Quantifiable outcome

• Distributed 4,100 doses of Narcan in first year of Harm Reduction Project

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Region Ten Community Services BoardcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership to help members of the community with serious mental challenges understand their conditions and fashion individualized paths to recovery. Region Ten provides Harm Reduction Project support and coordination.
• Offender Aid & RestorationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerProvides adult, non-violent, substance-dependent felony offenders with substance abuse treatment as an alternative to incarceration.
• Projects for Assistance in Transition from Homelessness (PATH)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartners with PATH to provide outreach and assistance to adults with serious mental challenges who are experiencing homelessness or at risk of becoming homeless.
• Ivy Creek FoundationminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerHistorical partnership providing research and documentation on the Johnson House history and Vinegar Hill connection.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• SMART Recovery: National nonprofit offering self-empowering, science-based addiction recovery meetings. On Our Own hosts SMART Recovery meetings as part of its service mix, making SMART Recovery the national-scale incumbent in the same modality On Our Own delivers locally.
• Faces & Voices of Recovery: National recovery advocacy organization promoting peer-led recovery. Directly comparable as both organizations center lived-experience leadership and represent the broader peer recovery movement On Our Own operates within.
• Herren Project: National nonprofit providing substance use treatment and recovery support. Comparable as a peer-support and recovery-focused nonprofit offering free services funded by donations and grants, similar to On Our Own's operating model.
• Phoenix Multisport: National peer-support recovery organization built around community, fitness, and sober active events. Operates with a similar lived-experience-led, free-of-charge peer support model that On Our Own also delivers locally.
• Recovery International: National peer-led mental health self-help organization using trained volunteer leaders. Comparable to On Our Own in delivering peer-led support groups for adults with mental health and recovery challenges.
• Young People in Recovery: National nonprofit building recovery support networks through peer-led community chapters. Comparable to On Our Own as both rely on volunteer-led, in-person peer recovery groups as their primary service delivery model.
• National Council for Mental Wellbeing: National membership organization advancing mental and substance use services. Comparable at the category level as it represents the broader peer-support, behavioral health, and community recovery ecosystem On Our Own operates in.

Regional players

• Region Ten Community Services Board: Regional behavioral health authority serving the same Charlottesville-area counties. Comparable as a peer/support partner in serious mental health and substance use services, though it is a publicly funded CSB rather than a peer-run nonprofit.
• Offender Aid & Restoration (OAR): Local Charlottesville-area nonprofit providing alternatives to incarceration for substance-dependent offenders. A close operational partner of On Our Own and comparable as a regional nonprofit in the recovery and reentry space.

Emerging players

• PROS (Peer Recovery Outreach & Support) Network: Peer-run recovery support networks operating in adjacent regions of Virginia and similar states. Comparable as community-rooted, lived-experience-led peer recovery support providers in the same category as On Our Own's daily groups.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks4 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/onourowncville

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles14 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about On Our Own