The LifeBuilder Luncheon is a chance for friends and community members to come together and celebrate the power of recovery. Grounded in the themes Stronger Together, Stories of Recovery, Connection, and Hope, this special gathering is all about community. It is a time to reconnect, share a meal, and stand alongside individuals and families building healthier futures. Whether you have been connected to Communities for Recovery for years or are just getting to know us, we would love for you to join us. Your presence helps strengthen a community where recovery is possible and no one has to walk alone.
2026 Keynote Speaker
Valerie Milburn
Mental Health: Hope and Recovery Podcast
Our 2026 Luncheon Keynote Speaker is Valerie Milburn. We are delighted and honored to have Valerie join us as someone who is uniquely qualified to speak about and on behalf of Communities for Recovery (CforR). She has served in many roles as part of our CforR Family since 2004.
Valerie is a former member and Chair of the Board of Directors for Communities for Recovery. As a volunteer, she led recovery meetings at the Austin State Hospital and other hospitals and treatment centers for more than a decade. She is the co-creator and co-host of the award-winning podcast Mental Health: Hope and Recovery, which is currently in its fifth year. Through the podcast, Valerie shares her mental health journey of struggle, crisis and recovery. Hope is apparent in her life of long-term recovery with substance use disorder and bipolar disorder.
Valerie’s mental health advocacy includes frequent presentations at crisis intervention training for law enforcement agencies and numerous varied audiences throughout Central Texas. Her awards include honors from both the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) Central Texas and NAMI Texas, and the Presidential Service Award.
Valerie holds a degree in journalism from the University of Texas at Austin and began her career in marketing and advertising as the Communications Manager for the nonprofit Texas Research League. Before retiring to focus full-time on family and volunteerism, she worked for AISD as a teacher, teaching English, Journalism, and Photojournalism and as a curriculum writer. She and her husband, Malcolm, have been married for 42 years; they have two children and five grandchildren. For Valerie, family is everything.
You can follow Valerie’s recovery journey each month on the Mental Health: Hope and Recovery podcast. Click below to find episodes and more information about this amazing recovery resource.
