The Queens of Harm Reduction MKE

Tahira Malik, founder of Samad’s House. Her personal journey from substance use and incarceration to community leadership inspires others. In 1997, Malik graduated from Alverno College with a degree in social sciences, psychology, and professional communications. Since opening its doors in 2020, Samad's House has grown into a lifeline for Milwaukee women. The organization operates three sober living homes and a behavioral health clinic, providing 120-day intensive programming for women and women with children recovering from substance use disorder. In just five years, it has helped more than 75 women and nearly a dozen families reclaim their lives.

Malik built the organization on a simple but radical idea: give back to the same community that once tore you down. "It's one thing to come into recovery and start rebuilding your life," she said, "but then we talk about that community support, that collective type of wanting to give back to the same community that once tore you down. And that's where harm reduction came into play."

Caroline Gaston is a Community Ambassador at Samad’s House. Her story is a powerful testament to the hope and change that can emerge when individuals complete recovery programs designed to address substance disorders. It also underscores the critical need for harm reduction strategies that prevent overdose deaths—an urgent issue in Milwaukee’s Black communities. Caroline Gaston’s journey proves that every life holds the potential for transformation and redemption. Milwaukee must continue investing in harm reduction programs to save lives and foster recovery.

“At one point, I ended up battling with homelessness, suicidal thoughts, isolation, and withdrawal from my family,” Gatson says. “And along the way, I had to deal with a lot of death in my family, and next thing I knew, I was back in full-blown addiction.  It took me seven years longer to fully embrace what needed to be done and have the courage to do it. I learned that most people say, " Well, when I get my nails done or my hair done, then I'm going to check into treatment, or I am going on this day because I'm waiting on something to happen.  However, I've learned that recovery does not come with a specific appointment date or time. It's just something that happens. It has to happen like at the spur of the moment when you decide that you are tired of this life and must have a change.”

Connie works at The Milwaukee Turners as the Director of Recovery and Peer Support Services. She obtained her Substance Abuse Counseling - In Training License from the State of Wisconsin in December 2024. Connie is a member of the 2025 Cohort of the State of Wisconsin Behavioral Health Emerging Leaders Program and serves on the State Council on Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse Person Centered Support Committee, Milwaukee County Harm Reduction Creative Advisory Board, and The Midwest Black and Brown Harm Reduction Network. She is experienced in many social service settings, helping adults and children with disabilities such as intellectual, mental health concerns, physical, traumatic brain injuries, and substance abuse concerns. "I have been fortunate enough to fall into a career that is my passion."

More importantly, she is coming up on eight years of recovery from substance abuse. She has found that working in the field has strengthened her own recovery. In fact, she says she has more strength than she has ever been able to give to the people in the recovery community. Being a Mexican American woman who has overcome struggles with substance disorders and other intergenerational traumas, she knows firsthand what it feels like to be supported by people who can relate to you and truly know what you are going through. Witnessing the difficulties that many individuals go through in recovery, she hopes to be a part of decreasing stigma and opioid overdoses through the work of harm reduction and recovery.

Amanda is an accomplished behavioral health professional and public health advocate based in Wisconsin. She serves as the Regional Community Impact Manager for Community Medical Services (CMS), an organization specializing in medication-assisted treatment (MAT) and counseling for opioid use disorders. She is widely recognized for her leadership in expanding "treatment on demand" and deploying life-saving harm reduction strategies across the state.