Sustain Recovery Celebrates 11th Annual Alumni Luau, Marking Over a Decade of Adolescent Care in Orange County

More than 115 alumni gathered in Yorba Linda for a milestone celebration, reflecting Sustain Recovery's growth.

IRVINE, CA, UNITED STATES, August 31, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Sustain Recovery, an adolescent behavioral health treatment program based in Orange County, celebrated its 11th Annual Alumni Luau on July 25 at the Yorba Linda Community Center. More than 115 former clients, family members, and friends filled a banquet hall for an evening of community and fellowship, marking one of the largest alumni gatherings in the program's history.

The luau began years ago as a small reunion held in the living room of one of Sustain's founders. This year's event, complete with a full sit-down meal and a room the size of a wedding reception, reflects how far the program and its alumni community have grown.

"Every year this event gets a little bigger, and every year it reminds our staff why we do this work," said Sayeh Seyedfathi, CEO & Co-Founder of Sustain Recovery. "These are young people who came back on their own, because they wanted to see each other and show the newer families that recovery holds up over time."

Sustain Recovery opened its doors in 2015, founded by parents who had navigated adolescent treatment themselves and wanted to close the gaps they experienced firsthand. More than a decade later, that founding perspective still shapes how the program operates.

The alumni network is where that philosophy shows up years later. Many former clients stay connected through ongoing meetings and recovery support, and the annual luau has become a beloved event. Friends catch up with friends, new relationships are formed, and alumni return to show newer clients and families what is possible on the other side of treatment.

"You watch a kid come through treatment scared and closed off, and then a few years later they're back at the luau helping someone else feel less alone," said Co-Founder Kyle Carter. "That’s the beautiful part of this community."

Today, Sustain Recovery offers a full continuum of care for adolescents and their families, spanning sub-acute detox, adolescent residential mental health treatment, partial hospitalization (PHP), intensive outpatient (IOP), and standard outpatient (OP) programming. Its residential program is delivered through two gender-specific homes, giving teens a dedicated, structured environment during the earliest and most intensive phase of treatment.

Care is organized into distinct tracks so each teen lands in the program built for their needs: a mental health only track for adolescents whose primary challenges are psychiatric and emotional, with no substance use component, running alongside Sustain's dual diagnosis track for teens managing co-occurring substance use and mental health conditions like anxiety, depression, and trauma. As families step down in intensity, from residential into PHP, IOP, or outpatient care, Sustain Connection extends that same clinical and psychiatric support virtually, allowing teens to keep working with their care team while reintegrating into school and home life. Across every level, family programming is treated as central rather than supplemental, reflecting the program's founding belief that adolescent recovery is a family process.

As Sustain Recovery moves into its second decade, the Alumni Luau stands as one measure of a program built for long-term connection, not just short-term treatment.

To learn more about Sustain Recovery's programs for adolescents and families in Orange County, visit sustainrecovery.com.

About Sustain Recovery
Sustain Recovery is an adolescent behavioral health treatment program based in Orange County, California, offering a full continuum of care that includes sub-acute detox, residential treatment, PHP, IOP, and outpatient programming, along with a dedicated dual diagnosis track for co-occurring substance use and mental health conditions. Founded by parents with firsthand experience navigating adolescent treatment, Sustain treats the whole family, not just the individual, at every stage of care.

Kyle Carter
Sustain Recovery
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