Our Mission
WIMA creates space where people are welcomed, validated, and supported—on their own terms. Through peer connection, acceptance, and authentic community care, we support people through the realities of mental health, substance use challenges, and life’s toughest moments.
Our Vision
We envision a world where every person has access to non-judgmental support alongside peers who’ve traveled similar paths-- where healing is self-defined, and connection empowers each person in their unique journey.
Our Values
Lived Experience
We honor the wisdom gained through personal journeys with mental health, substance use, and survival.
Mutuality
We build relationships based on reciprocity, empathy, and shared humanity—not hierarchy.
Autonomy
We support each person’s right to define their path and make decisions about their care and life.
Radical Connection
We meet people where they are—with respect, dignity, and without judgment.
Peer Support
We believe healing happens through shared power and authentic human connection between people who’ve been there.
Community Care
We reject isolation and institutional coercion and dependence in favor of compassionate, grassroots networks of support.
Harm Reduction
We prioritize safety, dignity and practical strategies to reduce harm without requiring change.
Accessibility
We are committed to removing barriers so everyone can access support, regardless of circumstance.
Equity and Inclusion
We intentionally center the voices and needs of people historically marginalized by systems of oppression.
Transparency and Trust
We foster open, honest communication to build trust – with each other and within community.
Unconditional High Regard
We hold every person as inherently worthy of respect, compassion, and dignity—regardless of their circumstances, choices, or past.
Relational Accountability
We commit to showing up with honesty, presence, and humility. We take responsibility for our actions and their impact, listen with care, and honor our relationships through consistent, values-aligned behavior.
Our History
Wisconsin Milkweed Alliance, Inc. (WIMA) was formed in 2018 in response to an opportunity to operate a peer run respite in Western Wisconsin.
WIMA is a peer run organization. This means that all people involved in the organization, including the Board of Directors, Management, Employees, and Volunteers, identify as someone who has experienced challenges related to trauma, substance, use, or other difficult life circumstances, and is committed to providing support services from a peer perspective.
WIMA is guided by values consistent with the consumer/survivor/ex-patient movement (also known as the peer recovery movement). These include a belief in the possibility of healing and recovery, a focus on choice and self-determination, and an understanding of the social and environmental factors that play a role in an individual’s experience.
Our Name
WIMA is named for the milkweed plant, which is essential for monarch butterflies at all stages of their development. Female monarchs lay their eggs on milkweed, and monarch caterpillars rely on the plants to grow and develop. Many different species of milkweed plants throughout the United States provide monarch butterflies with food throughout their long migration journeys.
The scientific name for milkweed is Asclepias, named for Asclepius, the Greek god of healing. We hope that, like the many varieties of milkweed, WIMA can provide many opportunities to support individuals on their journeys to wholeness.