When Dr. Elfie Neber received a call from a community partner asking to meet, she assumed it was about students, internships or workforce needs.
Instead, she learned she had been selected to receive the Friend of Recovery Award, an honor recognizing an individual who has made a significant impact on recovery efforts in the Great Falls community.
Her reaction was immediate.
“Somehow, they picked me,” Neber said. “I’m like, ‘Huh? Me?’”
Neber, who recently became Great Falls College’s interim executive director of instruction, was nominated because of her role in developing the college’s Substance Abuse and Addictions Counseling program and her continued support of recovery efforts throughout the region.
The recognition came as a surprise to Neber, who has spent years building educational pathways for future counselors while serving organizations dedicated to prevention, mental health and recovery.
“I sort of think of it as it’s my job,” she said. “I wasn’t doing anything special.”
Others would disagree.
However, what isn’t in doubt is the role the college’s Substance Abuse and Addictions Counseling program plays as it has become an important source of trained professionals for communities across Montana. Graduates work in treatment centers, recovery programs and counseling settings, helping address workforce shortages while supporting individuals and families struggling with addiction.
The program’s impact extends beyond the classroom. Community organizations regularly host Great Falls College students for practicum experiences and frequently hire graduates after they complete their education.
For Neber, that work has always been deeply connected to a broader commitment to mental health.
“My passion is mental health, and substance abuse is a big piece of that,” she said. “The two just go hand in hand.”
Her perspective comes from years of experience working with clients and seeing firsthand how mental health and substance use disorders often intersect.
“You really see some of the devastation that causes,” Neber said. “If you don’t treat the mental health issues, substance use issues will persist. If you don’t treat the substance use issues, the mental health won’t get addressed, because a lot of it masks mental health issues.”
That understanding helped shape her work at Great Falls College, where she became a leading advocate for educating future counselors and expanding opportunities for students interested in behavioral health careers.
The award also recognizes Neber’s work beyond campus. She serves on the board of Alliance for Youth, an organization focused on prevention and helping young people build healthy, substance-free lives. Through volunteer efforts, committee work and community engagement, she has supported initiatives aimed at reducing risk factors before addiction ever takes hold.
Yet even as others celebrate her contributions, Neber is quick to redirect credit.
“I think this is an excellent opportunity to promote our Substance Abuse and Addictions Counseling program,” she said. “It’s an honor for the college that I was selected, but it’s also a great opportunity to get the word out there.”
The response was quintessentially Neber. While community leaders were recognizing her individual contributions, she was focused on students, graduates and the program’s mission.
That same mindset is helping guide her transition into a new role as interim executive director of instruction, where she now supports faculty and academic programs across the college after years as a faculty member, department chair and program director.
Neber admitted she surprised herself by accepting the position.
“It’s fun to have a new challenge,” she said. “I still feel a little lost in terms of, am I doing what I should be doing? And I’m still learning things all the time.”
Fortunately, her new role still allows her to remain in the classroom, something she says provides balance and reminds her why she entered higher education in the first place.
“I go to my class, and it’s just fun to do that instead of more emails and meetings,” she said. “I think one of the things that truly is beneficial is that I have been faculty for so long, and I understand some of those challenges and issues,” Neber said.
That experience, colleagues say, has made her a thoughtful advocate for both students and faculty members while helping maintain the college’s focus on workforce development and student success.
For Neber, however, the focus remains much the same as it has throughout her career: creating opportunities for students and strengthening the communities they will eventually serve.
The Friend of Recovery Award recognizes a lifetime of work dedicated to those goals. While Neber may view the honor as simply doing her job, the counselors trained through the program she helped build and the lives they touch throughout Montana tell a larger story.