Shane Bell
10/22/25QRT Coordinator, Community Connections
Shane Bell’s career in emergency medical services was cut short due to debilitating back problems. He has degenerative disc disease and was born with deformity in one ankle, which led to chronic pain and impaired mobility. His health struggles also led to a dependence on drugs and some trouble with the law–but that’s all in his past now.
As the McDowell County native began to rebuild his life, he explored career options that wouldn’t require a lot of walking or lifting. He thought of his brother, who had previous experience as a client of the West Virginia Division of Rehabilitation Services.
“My brother went through them for his college. So I reached out to see what opportunities they may have for me,” he said.
He connected with Russell Hazelwood, a vocational rehabilitation counselor with WVDRS, and expressed his interest in becoming the same type of counselor. Hazelwood thought Bell was well suited for the job.
“Shane has a strong desire to help other people,” Hazelwood said. “He’s very empathetic. He is a great communicator. He just has a lot of insight and understanding.”
Jamie Stein is deputy director for Community Connections, a nonprofit organization that provides prevention resources across 11 counties in southern West Virginia.
Stein said Bell originally came to Community Connections about a year and a half ago with the intention of achieving 500 hours needed for his PRSS certification.
“He’s made a valuable asset to the team and we wanted to find a way to keep him,” Stein said. “And luckily, with grants, those ‘lucks’ became possibilities. We signed him on as a QRT (quick response team) specialist and then elevated him to QRT coordinator to oversee the team.”
Stein praised Bell’s natural ability to connect with individuals.
“The key part, regardless of any certification, is having the tact and compassion to work with folks that need help,” Stein said. “Overall, when he starts working with someone as a stranger, right after that they become friends of colleagues.”
As QRT coordinator for Community Connections, Bell said his goal is to grow the program and help more people throughout West Virginia.
Hazelwood, who helped Bell get started on his career path, said he expects to cross paths with him in the future.
“It was a pleasure working with Shane,” he said. “In the role he works now we’ll probably be running into one another because many of his clientele are eligible for our services.”
This October marks eight years of sobriety for Bell, a period during which he successfully rebuilt family relationships and established a new career. A single father, he likes to spend his free time with his 18-year-old son, fishing, grilling out and listening to music.
Bell says he’s grateful to the WVDRS for helping him turn his life around. Despite the rocky road he traveled to get where he is today, he openly shares his journey in hopes that his experiences will inspire others facing similar challenges.
“I want to be able to show people that you can still be productive in life. I want them to be able to see that just because you’ve done things in your past doesn’t mean you cannot prevail in life. You can still move forward,” he said.