Event aimed at ending stigma of addiction
Published 12:00 am Thursday, September 2, 2021
- On the Road to Recovery, a touring event organized by the Briermost Foundation, based in Cuyahoga County, was aimed at reducing the stigma surrounding addiction. (The Ironton Tribune | Heath Harrison)
A group touring the state of Ohio to focus on the addiction epidemic made a stop in Ironton on Monday.
The On the Road of Recovery tour, organized by the Briermost Foundation, was set up for the evening at the farmers market.
“We’ve been going around Ohio to all different cities,” Amber Shunk, project manager for group, said. “We’ve been holding many events and offering resources with each event.”
The Briermost Foundation provides safe, sober and supportive housing to women in recovery from drugs and alcohol, and says they provide purpose in living through learning and training opportunities.
An RV was parked next to the shelter where the group was setting up for their four-hour visit, with a grill ready to go.
Shunk said the visit was focused on conducting interviews with people from “all different walks of life” about recovery.
“It’s to get people talking and reduce the stigma of addiction,” she said of the five interviewers who came.
She said typical questions would be “What does recovery mean to you?” and “What is your proudest moment in sobriety?”
Shunk said interviews from the tour can be found on the group’s YouTube channel at www.youtube.com/c/ontheroadofrecovery.