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Sponsored by the Northwestern Prevention Collaborative. Recovery Ally Programs are trainings that are designed to increase a community’s recovery capital, decrease stigma and grow intervention skills. The next session of this training will be held virtually on January 26, 2022 from 1 – 4 pm. This training is a 3-hour training developed at Virginia Commonwealth University to train faculty and staff to become Recovery Allies.

Individual modules include:

• Basic Science
• What does an Ally Do?
• Racial Justice and Recovery
• Philosophies of Care & Pathways to Recovery, Families, and Language.

This training is very interactive and is meant to provide a great starting point to supporting people struggling with substance use disorders.

Audience

All are welcome. This training is a very helpful primer as a family member, lay person, friend, employer, health care provider etc. For people with limited exposure to treatment or recovery, it can provide some great starting points. For professionals or people with a great deal of lived experience, it will provide a set of slides, tools and approaches that may be helpful with clients or family members or may provide an easy way to train community members to be part of the solution. Because the training is conversation driven, professionals can often be particularly helpful to other participants during the training.

The Warren Coalition is teaming up with Northwestern Community Services Board Prevention and Wellness Services to focus on positive messaging related to kindness during the month of January, to bring light and inspiration during a time in which there is often high rates of Seasonal Depression and excessive stress and anxiety due to the colder, darker months and COVID-19. The goal of this campaign is to provide inspiration, education, and motivation without minimizing the feelings or complex reality that many face.

The foundation of the campaign is the “tree” which takes on multiple different aspects that can be related to life and the obstacles we face, but how we can continue to grow. The goals of the campaign are to deliver the following through positive messaging:

• To raise awareness about the stigma that surrounds mental health
• To encourage community members to create healthy routines, connect with others, and find the positive despite the current struggles we all face
• To foster connection and resilience in our communities by emphasizing kindness

During each week of the campaign, there will be a call to-action with tips, activities, and education to promote kindness in our communities. There are various ways to engage in the campaign, including social media engagement. To keep up to date with the campaign, follow @LordfairfaxYRA on all social media platforms for infographics, photos, and quotes. Please feel free to share their posts and include their hashtag #NWRootedinkindess.

Get involved. Be creative. Implement #NWRootedinKindess into your everyday work this month. Find ways to connect while educating the community about being kind to self and others.

In addition, yard signs with messages of kindness have been purchased as part of this effort. Interested in displaying a FREE yard sign? Within Warren County, contact the Warren Coalition at wc@warrencoalition.org or call Celeste at 540-660-336. Outside Warren County, email youthresourcealliance@gmail.com.

See a sign? Take a picture and be sure to tag @lordfairfaxyra and use the hashtag #NWRootedinKindess

Warren County youth ages 11-14 are invited to participate in this year’s Health Video Contest running now through January 14th! Youth can submit a video 30 seconds or less about any of the following topics:

• Getting Quality Sleep
• Eating Healthy
• Exercising Regularly
• Drinking Water

Email ryan@warrencoalition.org for more info.