There are new options in some Kentucky counties for families affected by drug and alcohol abuse.

Parents at risk of losing custody can opt into a program that helps them get their lives back on track.

It's called Family Recovery Court, and judges and advocates say it brings stability to those who have suffered addiction.

Judge Don Landman Blair became family court judge in Hardin County two years ago.

Near the top of her to do list.

It was one of the things that was really important.

Offering family recovery, court and dependency, abuse and neglect cases.

Potentially.

And I work together at the county attorney's office and spent lots of time talking about, you know, kind of the dream of having something like this.

That dream is becoming reality.

With new FRC offices in Elizabethtown and Somerset offering a three phase program that connects parents struggling with substance abuse to resources for recovery.

And if the courts and government can be a part of providing those supports, that's what we need to be doing.

Holden says those cases account for 30 to 40% of petitions they see in family court.

What we find, if you look at the rest of them, if you peel back the onion, it's there in the other cases too.

This program doesn't take people kicking and screaming into it.

We've got to have some acknowledgment that there is an issue.

I can't force you to get help.

I can order it.

But ultimately, you're going to be the one that can comply with this.

I started using drugs at a very young age.

An addiction that would follow Kelly Sam's into motherhood until she became sober through family recovery court.

I said when I walked through the doors, I knew I was in the right place.

Sam's is a program graduate in Clay County, where she now works as a peer mentor.

I've seen so many girls walk in here, you know, upset because, you know, they lost their child.

We're here to help you.

It's just a helping hand.

Judge Clint Harris says the program bundles together intensive addiction treatment, mental health assessments and parenting classes.

Instead of giving somebody a piece of paper and saying, here's what you need to do.

We say, Here's what you need to do and we're going to help you.

He says he's seen much success with FRC in Clay County, and it's rewarding to watch the transformation.

It's kind of like the last words they suddenly the light comes on that what they've been doing is probably not the best.

And I suddenly realized they can do different.

They can do better.

And see slow but steady progress.

Volunteers of America Mid-State oversees the program, which includes weekly court sessions, drug screens and meetings.

The ultimate goal is long term sobriety and family reunification.

In some cases, the children are never removed from the home if conditions are deemed safe.

Any time a child is removed from their home, that's a loss to that child.

We can never really make up for that loss.

By using this type of program.

It gives us the option and the ability to leave kids in the home with lots of services or if we still have to remove the children.

It gives us the ability a lot of times to return the children and reunify the family quicker.

Family recovery Court's goal is to restore the home to a healthy, functioning family unit.

We do want this to be long term.

We don't want to just put a Band-Aid on it.

And then you know, we see them back in family court again in six months.

The chances of relapse and ending back up in the court system go down dramatically for individuals that successfully complete recovery court.

It's just amazing feeling.

For Kelly, it's meant lasting sobriety and a chance to help others become the best version of themselves.

This program helped me so much, and I know how good this program is, this job.

It's not just a job to me.

I live there.

I've learned by now I get the help and I get to use all the tools that I went through when I used to help them.

And in Hardin and Pulaski Counties, where the program is brand new, they hope to see the same success.

The success stories, and see in the clients who a year or two years later come back to us and they're working and they've got their kids and they've got a house.

That's really kind of why you do it.

And there are many facets to Family Recovery Court You heard them mention those parenting classes, life skills classes, and if needed, they'll help participants find a job and a stable place to live.

The new offices in Hardin and Pulaski Counties are still in the planning stages.

They are hiring staff and onboarding.

They hope to be officially up and running by early to mid-summer.