About The Blackburn Foundation
The Blackburn Foundation is a Los Angeles 501(c)(3), founded in 2023 by Robby Patrick. We pay for addiction and mental health treatment, run a free creative center in Culver City, and are planning a recovery campus for West Los Angeles. Access to care is a basic human right.
It started in sober living.
Robby Patrick began working in sober living on the Westside of Los Angeles in 2012. In 2014 he founded Blackburn Recovery Services, sober living and recovery support for men in West Los Angeles.
In 2023 he founded The Blackburn Foundation. The Foundation launched in November 2023. Since then it has raised about $1.95 million, awarded more than $1.65 million in treatment scholarships and helped more than 100 people into treatment.
In 2026 the Foundation opened the Creative Arts Community Center in Culver City, a free place for music, art and recovery. Read how creative arts can support recovery.
President and Founder
Robby Patrick
President and Founder
Robby Patrick is an addiction specialist in the behavioral health field. He has supported recovery-based services in Los Angeles since 2012 and has more than 40,000 hours of hands-on experience in substance use disorder treatment.
He founded Blackburn Recovery Services in 2014, The Blackburn Foundation in 2023, and co-founded Blackburn Clinical Services in 2025. He has shared his own story on the Against All Odds Podcast and on The Peak of Possibility Podcast with Glynis Franz.
BoardThe people behind the Foundation
Nathan Blumenfeld-James
Vice President / Vice Chair
Nathan has been a creative executive at Steven Bochco Productions for over 15 years, overseeing development, creation and production of multimedia content with an emphasis on music supervision, scoring and composition. He is the owner and founder of BLKMKT music, a full-service music house for TV, film and advertising, and the director of Blackburn Mentoring Services. He has over 20 years of sobriety and has worked in treatment and recovery for over a decade, using his experience in the entertainment industry to help young men in early sobriety find their passion and purpose.
Mark Vizioli
Director of Admissions
Mark has 29 years of experience in recovery and over 12 years in professional recovery service and ministry, and is a co-founder of EARS (European Association of Recovery Specialists). He holds an STB/MDiv from the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas (Angelicum) and is a Certified Intervention Professional (CIP), a Certified Recovery Coach (CRC, Sober Academy) and a Registered Alcohol Drug Technician (RADT, CCAPP). His memberships include the National Association of Catholic Chaplains, the National Association for Lay Ministry, the Association for Practical Theology, Princeton Association UK, the American Communication Association and the Mystical Theology Network at Oxford.
Ian Lansbury Shaw
Director of Community Partnership
Ian graduated from the USC Marshall School of Business with a major in Business Management and a minor in Real Estate Development. He is the owner and operator of Spear Recovery Inc. and of Webster Shaw Properties LLC. Previously he worked at Blackburn Recovery as a Sober Living House Manager (2018), at Patoma Inc in building management and building investments (2013 to 2017), and at CBRE as a real estate broker (2012 to 2013).
Christopher Huitfeldt
COO, Co-Chair
Christopher has an MBA, CCMI-M and a CIP. He has been a behavioral health professional for more than 8 years and has been instrumental in both the startup and corporate organizations he has contributed to in the treatment industry. His responsibilities include networking, monthly board meetings, client assessment and the application process, and serving as secretary.
Melissa Proulx
Treasurer
Melissa started her career at IBM in 2012 and moved into the mental health and substance use field in 2014. Her company, Stone Harbor Strategies, works with organizations across behavioral health. Her responsibilities include monthly board meetings, accounting and bookkeeping.
Josh Cobia
Advocate Director
Josh has 15 years of experience in nonprofits. He has been a pastor for 13 years at Cal Church, Resonate and New Abbey, and is a trained spiritual director and coach. Josh is committed to upholding the mission and purpose of the organization, maintaining its 501(c)(3) status, ensuring compliance with nonprofit regulations, strategic planning and community relations.
Creative Arts Community Center
Randy Browne
Founding Director
Originally from Long Island and now based in Los Angeles, Randy spent over a decade touring before a battle with addiction led him to rediscover purpose by helping others tap into their own creativity. Drawing on extensive teaching experience across the country, Randy leads the Center.
How we work
Person first
Every scholarship is built around one person’s need.
Long enough to work
We fund care for months, not weeks, when that is what it takes.
Built by practitioners
Our team works in recovery every day. We know what care looks like up close.
Community, on purpose
Recovery happens inside a community. So we build one.
Part of a larger family
The Blackburn GroupQuestions
What is The Blackburn Foundation?
A Los Angeles 501(c)(3) nonprofit that pays for addiction and mental health treatment through treatment scholarships, runs the free Creative Arts Community Center in Culver City, and is planning a recovery campus in West Los Angeles.
Who founded The Blackburn Foundation?
Robby Patrick, its President and Founder. He founded the Foundation in 2023, and it launched in November 2023.
Is The Blackburn Foundation a 501(c)(3)?
Yes. It is a 501(c)(3) public charity, EIN 36-5017255.
Where is The Blackburn Foundation based?
Los Angeles. The office is at 12326 Venice Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90066.
Who does the Foundation help?
People who are ready for addiction or mental health treatment and cannot pay for it, across the United States, and the families and professionals helping them. Resources for paying for treatment.
Where can I find more answers?
See the FAQ, or how we write our guides in our Editorial Policy.