SAMHSA’s Road to Recovery Update

The Road to Recovery Update keeps you informed about activities leading up to National Alcohol & Drug Addiction Recovery Month (Recovery Month) in September. Feel free to forward this information to friends and colleagues, include it in newsletters or listservs, or link to it from your Web site by going to Road to Recovery Updates.

Help us to continue to grow in our efforts to improve the lives of individuals and their families affected by alcohol and drug use disorders!

Premiering Today: August Road to Recovery Webcast: The Social Services System: Supporting Treatment and Recovery for Individuals and Families

Join host, Ivette Torres, for the August Road to Recovery webcast, which looks at a recovery-oriented system of care. Recovery-oriented systems of care include all sectors of society working together to support recovery for an individual and for members of that person's family. Social services are a critical link in the chain of support; they can help identify addiction and affected family members, direct individuals to appropriate treatment and recovery support services, and support those already in recovery.

Announcing the August Road to Recovery Ask the Expert: Nacshon Zohari, LCSW

Nachshon Zohari is the Program Administrator for Substance Abuse Treatment for the Denver Department of Human Services. Mr. Zohari has reached a broad spectrum of people in his work, specializing in substance abuse, trauma, and mental health issues. He is involved with several local initiatives in substance abuse in the Denver, Colorado, area such as the Mayor's Office of Drug Strategy, Colorado Drug Endangered Children, and the Denver Collaborative Project. He is also known for his work with Denver EFFECT—an interagency initiative to provide comprehensive and coordinated treatment to families affected by substance abuse.

Questions for the August Road to Recovery Webcast: The Social Services System: Supporting Treatment and Recovery for Individuals and Families are due by Friday, August 21, 2009.

Submit your questions to Mr. Zohari by using the “Contact Us” form on our Web site. Answers from Mr. Zohari will be posted on the Recovery Month Web site in early September. Contact information for questions will be kept confidential.

Recovery Month launches a Facebook page!

Get up-to-the-minute updates on Recovery Month events, PSAs, and videos, and connect with other Facebook members who support recovery and treatment by joining the Recovery Month Facebook page! Read the Recovery Month Social Media Comment Policy here.

May Ask the Expert Questions and Answers Posted

View the Questions and Answers from the May Road to Recovery Webcast, Providing a Continuum of Care: Improving Collaboration Among Services. Questions asked by the public have been answered by Dr. Thomas Kirk, Jr., Ph.D., Commissioner of the Connecticut Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services.

Post Your Events and Urge State and Local Officials to Submit Proclamations!

Promote your Recovery Month event to a national audience and participate in the milestone of the nationwide campaign’s 20th anniversary by reaching out to key leaders in your community to elevate the general public’s and media’s attention to the issue. Ask your state and local officials to issue proclamations recognizing September as Recovery Month. Need ideas? View other national community events by state or zip code and see how others are celebrating Recovery Month. Start planning now and post your events, proclamations, and observances today!

2009 Recovery Month Public Service Announcements Available on our Web Site

Raise awareness about treatment and recovery in your community by distributing and airing Recovery Month PSAs on local television and radio stations. View the television 2009 PSAs Black and White in Color and Making Sense, in both English and Spanish, and listen to the radio PSAs, Homework and Making Sense. In addition, open-ended versions of the television and radio PSAs are available so communities can localize them with local resource information. To order copies of the television and radio PSAs, please contact recoverymonth@samhsa.hhs.gov.

New! Expanded Features on the Recovery Month Web Site

The 2009 Recovery Month Toolkit is now easier than ever to navigate, view, and download. A tutorial video, hosted by Ivette Torres, shows you the materials included in the toolkit, how to navigate it, and where to find exactly what you are looking for. Visit the Web site, view the video, and access the toolkit.

Community Events can now be searched for by state, zip code, title, and location (within a 10- to 100-mile distance). The new event planner account system allows event planners to submit multiple events, edit events, and post events easily each year based on the previous years' and events' information.

Resources and Special Topics can be searched by subject or audience. Previous years’ Recovery Month Targeted Outreach pieces as well as other special topics are available.

The 2009 Recovery Month Toolkit, Posters, and Flyers Are Now Available Online and in Print!

Recovery Month is pleased to announce the release of the 2009 Recovery Month Toolkit, designed to help you plan and publicize your activities during Recovery Month in September and throughout the year. The toolkit is available on our Web site and includes three sections:

			Media Outreach offers tips for planning and promoting your Recovery Month activities.
			Targeted Outreach offers details about substance use disorders, tailored for specific audiences.
			Resources can help you prepare for your Recovery Month events, as well as consider potential partnerships with other organizations to share resources. The 2009 toolkit can be ordered by calling 1-800-662-HELP and will be available online within the next week for ordering and downloading.

To help you promote Recovery Month, posters and small and large flyers that outline the 2009 Recovery Month campaign, as well as the 2008 Recovery Month successes, are also available for download at Banners, Logos, and Flyers.

All Recovery Month 2009 materials are available for order by calling 1-800-729-6686 or visiting Publications and Ordering. Download and order yours today!

Recovery Month Wants To Post Your Press Releases, News, Studies, and Reports, and Other Information

Recovery Month is interested in posting your news, press releases, studies, reports, calls for releases, and other information on our new Web site. If you have materials related to substance use disorders, treatment, and recovery, please send them to recoverymonth@samhsa.hhs.gov.

About Recovery Month

National Alcohol and Drug Addiction Recovery Month, celebrating 20 years of observance in 2009, is an initiative of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration's Center for Substance Abuse Treatment. For more information about Recovery Month, visit http://www.recoverymonth.gov.