“Someone should do something!”
How many times have you heard those words? How many times have you said them yourself? More specifically, how often have they referred to the “opioid crisis,” or addiction in general?
Individuals who saw, lived and heard about the crisis in our area began feeling it had reached epidemic proportion, and someone needed to do something. Currently, there is planning and work being done to develop a recovery oriented community. This began with Drug Court just more than two years ago. Ten people have graduated.
Manitowoc County Human Services expanded its team and available services to help support individuals with substance use disorder, as well as other mental health needs.
Christma Rusch, Director of Lighthouse Recovery Community Center
To fill another gap in services, Lighthouse Recovery Community Center opened its doors last October. This allows those seeking recovery a safe and social place to go in between treatment and programming. The center is at 721 Park St. and offers 44 support groups a month.
The center has fulfilled its mission more than 2,000 times since it opened. It also hosts other social events over the course of a month, including movie night, volleyball, family dinner and art in recovery.
Manitowoc’s local sober living homes and Core Treatment Services Inc. are also an incremental part of building a recovery oriented community here.
As an additional step in the right direction, the Dose of Hope campaign from 4 to 7 p.m. Sept. 20 is a Stigma Reduction and Recovery Awareness fundraiser benefiting the center. It will be at the Rahr-West Art Museum as well as at Lighthouse Recovery Community Center and will include speakers, entertainment, an auction and food. Cost is $25, with proceeds going to continue the work that is being done and is being planned for.
The art and Dose of Hope gallery are sure to inspire all those attending. You do not want to miss this!
Christma Rusch is executive team member of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Coalition of Healthiest Manitowoc County.
Published by the Herald Times Reporter on September 16, 2019