We believe that each individual we assist has a unique set of issues to address in their process to be free of self defeating behaviors.
Empower CTC in is ready to help you stop the pain
“The life you want by learning the skills you need.”
01/02/2026
Empower Treatment Center provides personalized mental health counseling in Rochester, MN. Our compassionate therapists help you manage anxiety, depression, and emotional challenges through understanding and support. Call 507-292-1379 or visit www.empowerctc.com to begin your journey toward healing today.
12/31/2025
Everyone experiences emotional ups and downs, but consistent stress can affect your health. Empower Treatment Center offers counseling that helps you identify triggers, develop coping skills, and restore emotional balance. Let’s work together toward lasting mental .
12/31/2025
Are you ready to bring in the New Year??? Make sure to do it at Recovery Is Happening !!
#2026
ALPHA Addicts Learning and Practicing Healthy Alternatives
YAKETY YAK… I’M NOT GOING BACK! NEW YEAR’S SOBER PARTY 2026
Ring in the New Year with Recovery Is Happening fun, fellowship, and freedom—sober style!
6:00 PM – CMA Speaker Meeting
7:00 PM – Doors Open to the Public
8:00 PM – Activities Begin
Minute-to-Win-It Games (Teams of 5 – kids included!)
🍕 Pizza served throughout the night
🍿 Snack/Appetizer Potluck (bring a favorite!)
🎶 Music + lights
🎁 Raffle drawings every 30 minutes
🎆 New Year’s Eve Countdown!
Bring your family, bring your friends, and bring in 2026 sober, strong, and smiling
Let’s celebrate how far we’ve come Yakety Yak… we’re not going back!
12/29/2025
With Recovery Is Happening – I just made it onto their weekly engagement list by being one of their top engagers! 🎉
12/29/2025
Did you know that regular counseling sessions can improve focus, relationships, and self-esteem? Empower Treatment Center helps you achieve long-term emotional growth with trusted mental health guidance and compassionate care.
12/28/2025
👏👏👏
Whether they're ready for inpatient treatment or just need someone to talk to, patients in Mayo Clinic Hospital's emergency department can connect with addiction recovery specialists.
12/27/2025
Looking for a way to bring in the New Year!! Recovery Is Happening is having a Sober New Year's Eve Event!! 👇👇👇
YAKETY YAK… I’M NOT GOING BACK! NEW YEAR’S SOBER PARTY 2026
Ring in the New Year with Recovery Is Happening fun, fellowship, and freedom—sober style!
6:00 PM – CMA Speaker Meeting
7:00 PM – Doors Open to the Public
8:00 PM – Activities Begin
Minute-to-Win-It Games (Teams of 5 – kids included!)
🍕 Pizza served throughout the night
🍿 Snack/Appetizer Potluck (bring a favorite!)
🎶 Music + lights
🎁 Raffle drawings every 30 minutes
🎆 New Year’s Eve Countdown!
Bring your family, bring your friends, and bring in 2026 sober, strong, and smiling
Let’s celebrate how far we’ve come Yakety Yak… we’re not going back!
12/26/2025
Empower Treatment Center believes in the power of connection and understanding. Our licensed therapists provide one-on-one counseling designed to help you rediscover hope. Visit www.empowerctc.com or call 507-292-1379 to schedule a session today.
12/24/2025
Time for some voting everyone!!
12/24/2025
Anxiety doesn’t have to control your life. Empower Treatment Center provides proven strategies that reduce worry and improve peace of mind. Experience a safe environment to explore thoughts and emotions.
12/22/2025
Depression can feel isolating, but you’re never alone. Empower Treatment Center helps you navigate emotional lows with professional counseling, encouragement, and proven tools to rebuild joy and motivation.
12/19/2025
Empower Treatment Center helps you regain emotional control through goal-oriented counseling. Build healthier habits, overcome mental barriers, and find calmness. Call 507-292-1379 or visit www.empowerctc.com to get started.
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EmPower started as a nameless entity somewhere between Rochester and Jackson, Minnesota in 1992. Two new friends, Terry Hayward and Steve Lansing were traveling together to do presentations at a graduation in a small private school and began talking about their experiences with addiction treatment. From that discussion a new model for treatment began to take shape, a model that included the mental health issues that they saw as frequently part of the addiction struggle. That friendship and their desire to improve treatment programs moved them to working with a company for a short time, developing diagnostic software. Their next attempt at progress led to bringing in the skills and interests of others, John Allen, Mark Allen and Ann Lansing, with the goal of developing their own software for use in behavioral health practices. However, they remained a still unnamed entity.
A series of brainstorming sessions led to the name Dunatos. Stemming from the Greek word Dunatos (doon-a-tos) it means to empower, encourage, able. It was a unique name and one that no one else had used and few knew how to pronounce. From there an S corporation was formed and Dunatos became a software development company. Though the software was developed and put to use it was not as successful as the interest in the treatment model and philosophy. In 1994 the new agency was invited to put their model into action doing treatment with an addiction population in Goodhue County. Treatment was an outpatient-based program that was cognitive behavioral in approach and included assessments, treatment groups and life skills education.
By 1997 a local medical facility asked Dunatos to bring their treatment model into their inpatient and outpatient programming. Terry Hayward joined the medical group where Mark Allen was already employed. Steve and Ann Lansing became consultants doing life skills education with their programs. By 2000 the medical facility decided to close their behavioral health unit and the programs were closed. Staff from that program dispersed and opened small practices. Two staff moved to Northfield MN; two to Hastings, MN and Terry and another staff opened a practice in Red Wing. Dunatos went into hibernation. Terry Hayward’s practice chose the name Wenden Recovery. Wenden is an old English word meaning “to chart one’s course or to proceed on one’s way.” Recovery is a journey. In 2002 Terry Hayward, Steve Lansing, Ann Lansing and one other individual purchased a practice in Rochester and Wenden Recovery Rochester began about the same time as another Wenden in Winona was opened. All the Wenden offices offered outpatient chemical dependency treatment programs. Eventually Terry, Steve and Ann broke from the other programs.
In 2005 Wenden Recovery Services Rochester outgrew their office and moved to the DeWitz Plaza office. The practice at that time was run primarily by Terry Hayward and Ann Lansing as Steve continued to travel consulting with another industry. At that time the practice was still small enough to utilize only the first third of a building but expanded in the next two years to utilize the 5400 sq. foot building. By the end of 2005 it became clear that Steve’s mental health counseling skills were needed to continue to serve client needs and he left his consulting practice.
By 2009 there were Wenden Recovery agencies in three cities in Southeast Minnesota and referents, clients and funders were getting confused. This is when Wenden Recovery Rochester became EmPower CTC (Comprehensive Treatment Center). Though the name was changed EmPower still stands under the Dunatos corporate structure. This name fully reflects our corporate philosophy and mission of empowering others to a richer, fuller life. Over the years clinical staff have been added to EmPower CTC for both the chemical health component and mental health services. Staff now includes more than a dozen licensed counselors plus a cadre of administrative specialist. All of the clinical staff at EmPower CTC are licensed professionals, most with advanced degrees and decades of experience. We look at the whole person in treating problems, moving away from past self-defeating behaviors while moving toward personal health.