Sunday, September 30, 2012

Rally for Recovery

The first Rally for Recovery kicked off today in downtown Vancouver at the Vancouver Art Gallery squae. According to God's plan it was a 'dry' day '! Sunshine and smiles were everywhere. The speakers and singers were uplifting. Enthusiasm filled the air. One after another people spoke with gratitude for their freedom from the bondage of addictive disease. A great celebration!
The Recovery Societies, Alcoholics Anonymous, Narcotics Anonymous, Cocaine Anonymous and various others were well represented. Tents for information about the various treatment facilities were there, Orchard from Bowen Island, Edgewood from Nanaimo, Pacifica from Vancouver, Cedars from Vancouver Island and many more were ready to assist. The Drug Prevention Network of Canada booth was encouraging people to drop by and let the friendly folk there know how many years of recovery one had. They were tallying the total number of years for announcement later in the day.
Speakers encouraged high fives for success and the crowds answered with loud cheers. Obviously the success stories were there. Everyone looked so healthy. No one was puking, fighting or trying to steal from friends and family. There were a lot more tattoos though than might be found at a church picnics by comparison. Famous athletes shared their gratitude for returning to the real game. The Salvation Army and Union Gospel folk were there too. The First Nations community representatives promoting traditional healing for abstinence were naturally under a tent.
I liked seeing the Turning Point Recovery Society booth and looked about for Avlon Women's Recovery. New Westminister Recovery House for women had very attractive brochures.
On stage Rap artists rapped on recovery after a woman sang recovery blues. It goes on all afternoon. Hopefully it will be an annual event. Victoria, Calgary and Ottawa have joined in with their own Rallies for Recovery.














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