A community conversation about stigma and recovery is set for noon on Thursday, Nov. 7 at the Talbot County Senior Center in Easton.
The lunch and learn event is part of Talbot Goes Purple and focuses on how people can challenge stigma within themselves and support those in recovery for substance use disorder. Intended as an informal discussion, this community conversation will include Talbot County Sheriff Joe Gamble and local people in recovery. An interactive recovery portrait exhibit, ‘Stigma Highlight,’ will display throughout the event and includes personal stories of recovery journeys.
Lunch is available with a suggested donation of $5.50 for non-seniors and $2.75 for seniors. Please call 410-822-2869 by Oct. 24 to sign up for lunch, or bring your own.
“Part of our message with Talbot Goes Purple is for people to get the facts about substance use, which includes learning that people do recover,” said Gamble, who founded Talbot Goes Purple in 2016. “We hope people will come out, join the conversation, and see what we as a community can do to support people in recovery.”
Communities can help combat stigma in many ways, including revising words and terms used to discuss substance use disorder; recognizing that treatment, including medications, works; learning about substance use disorder; and by promoting community spaces where people can recover.
Stigma is a major barrier for people trying to overcome the challenges of addiction and overdose. Labeling, stereotyping and discrimination are all types of stigma that can damage the health and well-being of people with substance use disorder.
‘Stigma Highlighted,’ done in partnership with Talbot Goes Purple, Worcester Goes Purple and the Ocean City Art League, addresses negativity and bias toward people with substance use challenges. The exhibit has traveled to several high school schools across the Delmarva Peninsula; Salisbury University; and the National Institute for Drug Abuse. A copy currently displays at Grace Street, a recovery community organization in Easton. Each portrait includes a scannable QR code that shows a two-minute clip of the person’s interview, which is part of a 15-minute documentary.
Overdose deaths in Maryland declined last year for the first time since 2018. But overdose deaths in adults aged 55 and older have rapidly risen since 2016, killing 873 in 2023. Medicare does not cover substance use treatment, and a variety of factors including isolation and lower rates of screenings remain persistent barriers to care.
There is a relative lack of overdose prevention research; still, communities can help destigmatize substance use disorder and learn about Naloxone, medication disposal and other prevention measures.
Talbot Goes Purple is a substance use prevention program that empowers our youth and our community to ‘Go Purple’ as a sign of taking a stand against substance abuse. The initiative includes purple clubs in our local schools, through which students learn they do not need drugs or alcohol to meet life’s challenges. Talbot Goes Purple is in partnership with Talbot County Public Schools, Saints Peter and Paul Schools, and Mid-Shore Community Foundation.
For more information email talbotgoespurple@gmail.com. Find TGP on Facebook @TalbotGoesPurple.
Talbot Goes Purple is a component fund of the Mid-Shore Community Foundation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization – donations to which are tax deductible to the fullest extent allowed by law.
