When Dave Schulze walked through the doors of Caron Treatment Centers in 1991 seeking rehabilitation for his substance abuse, he discovered that they don’t just call the Wernersville campus “Magic Mountain” because of its scenic views.
“It really speaks to having come into this place in my very beginning with no direction, no sort of spirituality, just kind of lost and having doors open to reconnect and to gain some direction and just be able to live,” said Schulze, who returned to Caron as an employee two years after his treatment. He now serves as the campus’ senior vice president of facilities support operations.
“To me, it’s magic,” he continued.
That magic feeling rang true for several employees, who were not surprised that the facility — which aims to transform the lives of addicts and provide support for their families through personalized care based in behavioral and addiction science that encourages health and spirituality — earned a spot in this year’s Morning Call Top Workplaces list, ranking seventh among large companies with 500 or more employees.
With locations in Pennsylvania, New York, Georgia, Florida, and Washington, D.C., Caron has programs tailored to young and older adults, men’s and women’s treatment, the LGBTQ+ community, health care professionals, executives and more. With more than 400 workers in the Lehigh Valley taking care of treatment and hospitality, they also provide counseling and youth education for the patient’s family.
Mission-driven staff — many of whom have experienced addiction in their families — is what makes Caron, Caron, employees said. The company takes care of the people dedicated to taking care of others, providing mental and physical health resources.
The well-being of employees is critical to successful patient treatment, according to Caron’s leadership. Because of this, supervisors are trained to have more challenging conversations with employees about their work-life balance and goals, Ariella Jonas, senior vice president of human resources and training, said.
“Being able to ask those questions and then giving supervisors the tools to support their employees really provides a rich environment for growth and psychological safety in the workplace, and we only have that level of insight as a behavioral health environment,” Jonas said. “We treat our patients with the same level of sensitivity and support that we treat our employees.”
Wellness-centered benefits include paid time off (including birthdays), free access to the gym (with a group that plays pickleball together over the lunch hour), stress-checks with leadership and funded sessions with therapists.
The company’s Employee Assistance Program — which is available to all employees regardless of medical plan enrollment — also provides legal guidance, financial planning, elder care and child-care resources.
Ann McCracken, a recovery advocate who has been at the company for 20 years and has taken advantage of Caron’s mental health resources, said that making sure she’s OK allows her to show up for her patients.
“I always want to make a patient know that they’re never, ever alone,” McCracken said. “As a staff member, I know that I’m never, ever alone, which is really cool.”
Long tenures are not uncommon at Caron, employees said. The executive vice president of Caron’s Pennsylvania campus, Kate Appleman, began working for the company over 20 years ago as a receptionist.
“I have a decent amount of information about what people do and how things all work together, because I’ve just been here a long time,” Appleman said. “I also think that those experiences have given me the ability to truly, truly respect what people do in their day-to-day, because I’ve seen it in a lot of different capacities.”
In December, the Wernersville campus celebrated milestone anniversaries for a dozen employees, according to Marguerite Kelly, a public relations and communications specialist at Caron.
This growth is supported in part by a tuition reimbursement program. Caron helped pay for Appleman’s education — she holds master’s in both counseling psychology and business administration. She said multiple employees have pivoted careers in the company.
“I have met dozens of people who have reinvented themselves a couple times over here,” Appleman said.
While there are tough days in every position, when Appleman leaves the campus around 5 p.m., she is greeted by the sound of a ringing bell echoing across the mountain, reminding her why she — and many other employees — come back every day. These “ring outs” mark a patient’s departure, often accompanied by the person sharing what they are excited about in the future.
Isabella Gaglione is a freelance writer.
Caron Treatment Centers
Founded: 1957
Ownership: Nonprofit
Sector: Behavioral and Mental Health
Lehigh Valley employees: 425
Website: caron.org