Recovery takes center stage at Night of Hope
Turning Point System of Care celebrates fifth year in Howard County with stories of victory
“We are all recovering from something.”
That was the phrase echoed time and again at Turning Point’s Night of Hope at Foster Park on May 31. The event, which featured the Two Eight Band, singer Brooke Roe, and dozens of dignitaries from Indiana state agencies, drew a much larger crowd this year than previous years.
With burgers cooked up by Howard County Sheriff Jerry Asher and other members of the sheriff’s department, and other dinner refreshments provided by DC Coaters, this event was the most successful gathering of the last five years, according to event coordinator and Turning Point’s Director of Administration and Compliance Sherry Rahl.
Rahl also emceed the event that highlighted success stories with addiction recovery and mental health issues in Kokomo and Howard County.
Turning Point System of Care’s website states that they are “a recovery community that meets people where they are to provide helpful services and resources to those impacted and substance abuse disorders”. The Night of Hope is a yearly celebration of the victories that affected individuals and their families have achieved.
“This is our fifth year, and it gets bigger every year,” Rahl noted. “This has just been amazing, the amount of recovery services and resources that are here.”
Service vendors such as The Bowen Center, St. Vincent Ascension, and Community Howard Behavioral Health were on hand along with many other addiction recovery organizations.
Howard County Commissioner and Turning Point SOC’s Board President Paul Wyman introduced Indiana State Executive Director for Drug Prevention, Treatment and Enforcement Doug Huntsinger, who praised the city and the county for their commitment to supporting addiction recovery institutionally as well as individually.
“Where else would you see the sheriff cooking hamburgers for an event like this?” asked Huntsinger.
Speaker Niki Howensteine, State Director of Support Services from the State Division of Mental Health and Addiction, agreed as she shared her personal story of her two children who are both in recovery programs themselves.
Naketa Catchings, Turning Point SOC’s coordinator of the newly opened Recovery Cafe, also shared her recovery story and her two years of sobriety. When asked what events like the Night of Hope do for the community, she replied, “Events like this bring the community together, and I believe this is going to help us heal together.”
“It is great to see Turning Point, elected officials, business leaders, and non-profit organizations celebrating with our recovery family,” Wyman added. “It means the world to these families, especially the kids, to come out and fill the park and have a great time in a fun, safe environment.”
Wyman was also pleased about by the fact that “people who are in recovery can be proud of it … as opposed to the old way of thinking where they were shamed. That’s not Howard County.”
Rahl summed up the point of the Night of Hope: “Listen, we all are recovering from something…especially from the last two years.”
Rahl went on to state that prospective employers can also realize that “recoverers” can be employed, noting that of the 32 employees at Turning Point SOC, half of them have recovered from some type of addiction.
The message the Night of Hope, as Rahl said, is “that they (individuals affected by addiction and mental health issues) will be taken care of in our community by people that listen.”
To contact Turning Point SOC for any assistance, call their crisis support line at (765)860-8365
or contact them through their website, turningpointsoc.org.