A Letter from Stephanie Campbell

Friends,

The parallels between AIDS and the current addiction epidemic are undeniable. While nearly every family in America is affected by addiction, stigma and discrimination hold many back from speaking publicly about its impact.  At the height of the AIDS epidemic in 1995, faced with similar stigma and discrimination, but devastated by the loss of nearly 50,000 loved ones to the disease and fed up with the lack of compassion, care, research and treatment, folks began to stand up and speak out.  They were in a fight to survive a plague, and they knew that silence equaled death. So they came out to their families, their friends, and their lawmakers. They demonstrated, wrote letters, met with government officials, rallied in cities around the country, creatively challenging decision makers and the public, and demanded prevention, treatment and recovery services for their illness. Sound familiar?

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New York State Recovery Conference

The 2017 NYS Recovery Conference will take place on October 1st- 2nd at the Albany Capital Center. Presented by FOR-NY and ASAP, this is a not-to-missed event for anyone interested in building, supporting, and sustaining recovery in New York State and beyond. Register today! READ MORE 

Stories of Recovery

This month’s Recovery Story comes from our friend, Reverend Edith Woods-Washington, who will celebrate twenty three years of continuous recovery later this month. Congratulations Reverend! And, thank you for sharing your inspiring and beautiful story with us this month.

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Recovery Community Organizations

In this month’s issue of Recovery Talk we highlight ROCovery Fitness, a Rochester-based RCO comprised of physically active individuals brought together by sober living and committed to creating an environment of healing and recovery. 

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Youth Clubhouses

In this month’s issue, we check in with the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Youth Clubhouse, which opened its doors just 7 months ago. Thank you to Liam S. Cudmore, LMSW, Youth Clubhouse Membership Specialist and Peter Karys, LCSW, CPP, Director of Youth Counseling and Support for taking the time to speak with us and for all your doing to engage and support young people throughout the community.

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Turning Loss into Hope: Linda Ventura

Linda Ventura lost her young son, Thomas, to the disease of addiction in 2012. She has since gone on to establish Thomas' Hope Foundation, which is dedicated to promoting drug addiction awareness, prevention, and achieving victory for those individuals seeking sobriety through education, advocacy, research and treatment.

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Pathways of Recovery: Refuge Recovery

The founders of Refuge Recovery were inspired by the knowledge that while the theistic spiritual approach in AA and other 12-step programs helps many in their personal recovery, a significant number find that they need an alternative path. That profound need is evidenced by the exponential growth of this program since the book by the same name was published in 2014.  We’re pleased to highlight Refuge Recovery in this month’s issue of Recovery Talk.

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Recovery Coaching

Thanks to recent funding from NYS OASAS, agencies throughout the state have been able to add Peer Engagement Specialists to their staffs. For this month’s issue, we spoke with one of the first, Jordan Eubanks, to learn about his path to this newly created position and how he’s able to provide recovery support to his clients.

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Policy: Recovery Housing

Food, shelter and clothing are the three basic necessities for all human beings. For those individuals healing from active substance use, the lack of stable alcohol and drug-free living environments can make it difficult for them to build and sustain their recovery. Unsafe or risky living spaces can derail the recovery process for even the most determined person who wishes to become abstinent or reduce harm. (Polcin, Korcha, Bond & Galloway, 2011) Recovery-supportive housing can make all the difference.

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Education & Training

FOR-NY will present an updated Science of Addiction & Recovery training in 3 locations throughout the state this year. Learn about the training and where it's being offered here. 

Survey Results: Multiple Pathways of Recovery

In this month’s special report on our series Recovery in the Empire State, we turn our attention to the multiple pathways of recovery.

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14th Annual Recovery Art Festival Call for Entries!

Click here for information on submission guidelines and deadlines