MARQUETTE, Mich. (WZMQ) – The annual Run for Recovery brought hundreds of people together in Marquette and Sault Ste. Marie, on Wednesday, all raising money and awareness for addiction recovery services.
For 18 years, the Great Lakes Recovery Centers’ “Run for Recovery” has been inspiring people to break the silence of addiction and mental health challenges. This annual 10 and 5k run walk event raises money for GLRC’s “Compassionate Care Fund” that allows anyone with a desire to recover the means to do so.
“Treatment works and recovery works, but we need to be able to have that present every day of the week of the year in terms of making sure that people understand that it’s okay to seek help,” said GLRC’s CEO Greg Toutant.
Former NFL player and mental health advocate Sean Jordan was on hand as an honorary captain for the event. As a veteran and a pro athlete, Jordan understands the need for more awareness of substance abuse and the breaking down of the stigma surrounding addiction.
“It was important to me to be able to leverage those two platforms, veterans and also current former pro athletes, to help reduce stigma and raise awareness,” said Jordan.
Great Lakes recovery centers are among the few places in the Midwest to have a resident adolescent program. Marquette County Sheriff Greg Seibert believes early intervention like this is far more successful than a jail cell.
“Incarceration doesn’t work. We want to be able to help people get off drugs, get off alcohol, get back on, you know, to become productive citizens,” said Sheriff Zyburt.
This year was the most successful event to date, with over $20,000 raised for Recovery Services here in the U.P.
