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Province partners with New West society for Year of Recovery events

The Last Door Recovery Society is teaming up with the provincial government to spread the word about drug and alcohol addiction.
Recovery
The the Recovery Day B.C. Festival returns to uptown New West on Sept. 8.

The Last Door Recovery Society is teaming up with the provincial government to spread the word about drug and alcohol addiction.

The provincial government is providing the New West-based society with $50,000 to support its efforts to promote positive health and wellness, quality health-care delivery and health education through the Year of Recovery. Year of Recovery events – including the Recovery Day Festival being held in New Westminster on Sept. 8 – will encourage and celebrate British Columbians who are recovering, or are stable in their recovery, from their drug or alcohol addictions.

"One way to help stop the overdose crisis is to inspire people with lived experience to share their stories of hope," Giuseppe Ganci, chair of Recovery Week B.C. and director of community development at Last Door Recovery Society, said in a press release. "We cannot lose sight of people helping people during this crisis."

Year of Recovery includes a variety of community events that support positive health and health-care delivery and celebrate the many pathways to recovery. Events will focus on mental health and addictions, including prevention, awareness and reducing stigma.

“Hundreds of British Columbians are in recovery, and many of them found their way, based on the inspiration shared by those with lived experience," said New Westminster MLA Judy Darcy, the province’s minister of mental health and addictions. "With the unprecedented overdose crisis currently taking place in B.C., a Year of Recovery brings important focus on the many successes and positive life changes that continue to take place throughout the province."

Recovery Week B.C., which is being held Sept. 3 to 8, will provide an opportunity for service providers to engage with the public to raise awareness about drug and alcohol recovery, and provide information about supports and services to people living with addiction.

"My journey in recovery has been difficult at times. However, the connections I made to people in recovery, and their welcoming encouragement, is one of the reasons I was able to come back after several overdoses," Michael Kalicum, a young man with experience in recovery, said in a press release. "My friends inspired me; these events connected me, and they make me want to be part of recovery."

The second annual Recovery Capital Conference of Canada takes place at Anvil Centre on Sept. 6 and 7, and the Recovery Day B.C. Festival returns to uptown New West on Sept. 8. The festival will features entertainment on two stages, TedX style speakers, 90 vendor booths, food trucks, a kids zone and a memorial tent where people can honour those lost to addictions.

Other outreach taking place during Year of Recovery includes Clean, Sober and Proud booths at various Pride events, as well as a Sober Zone and the annual Untoxicated Street Festival at Vancouver Pride in August.

"Events taking place during Year of Recovery will allow us to hear the voices of those who have been able to reduce the harm in their life by bundling resilience and determination," said Jessica Cooksey, operations manager, Last Door Recovery Society.

The Recovery Day Vancouver Society had been hosting Recovery Day B.C. for several years before holding its first street festival in New Westminster in 2016. Organizers felt New Westminster was the perfect place to hold the festival as it’s home to some well-known recovery programs and numerous 12-step meetings.