Meetings are open to anyone of any age who has been touched by the Substance Abuse Disorder. (File photo)
Community Awareness and Addiction Recovery meetings the fourth Tuesday of every month at 7 p.m. in the little white AA building on Country Club Road. (File photo)
WADESBORO — Seeing a need in his community, William Short began holding Community Awareness and Addiction Recovery meetings the fourth Tuesday of every month at 7 p.m. in the little white AA building on Country Club Road.
While not affiliated with Anson County AA, Short is granted use of their meeting space for his much needed community endeavor. Short began holding the meetings in March and is very proud of the mark it has already made in the Anson County community.
Short himself has fought his battles and isn’t shy about admitting how far he has come.
“I have been clean for nine years with only one slip up,” says Short.
The first ever meeting of the Community Awareness and Addiction Recovery featured a special guest speaker — Mark Christopher the executive director at Samaritan’s Colony in Richmond County. Since its inception, Short has had guest speakers from Atrium Health Anson and is excited to announce guest speaker Stephanie Hoover potentially booked for February’s end of the month meeting.
Hoover is the OUD/SUD Specialist for FirstHealth of the Carolinas and is a NC Certified Peer Support Specialist, Certified Recovery Coach, Certified Life Coach, and certified in WRAP (Wellness Recovery Action Plan).
Short, who opens the meetings up to anyone of any age who has been touched by the Substance Abuse Disorder, is particularly excited to have Hoover as a guest speaker; her speciality lies in helping the families of loved ones dealing with addiction.
“Stephanie’s dedication to the treatment, recovery, and support for patients and their families has made her one of the most reliable resources for help in the recovery community,” says Short.
Additionally, Short has handed out Harm Reduction Kits county-wide, most recently during Ansonville’s first Drive-Thru Christmas event and Lilesville’s Christmas Parade. Most notably, these kits contain life-saving narcan.
“Narcan is good for people to carry whether they are or personally know an addict or not— you never know when you might see someone passed out on the street in need,” says Short, who carries narcan in his vehicle for just this reason.
Short says to date, the Anson County Opioid Funding Committee has distributed over 150 units of narcan and is working to train teachers across the district.
Alarming to Short, and in what should be a wakeup call for the community, Short claims over 200 overdoses occurred in the hospital last year in Anson.
“Our goal is to have more free help and resources to offer the Anson County community. People need to know there is a problem here in Anson — you probably have a family member that needs it [narcan] though you maybe don’t want to admit it.”
