Southern Alberta Regional Recovery Conference underway in Medicine Hat

By ANNA SMITH Local Journalism Initiative on November 7, 2024.

asmith@medicinehatnews.com

The Southern Alberta Regional Recovery Conference enjoyed a strong start Wednesday, as those invested in the healing of the Medicine Hat and area community gather for two days dedicated to mental health.

This is the second annual SARRCon, said director of operations and education Ryan Oscar, and this year, they have expanded their scope to include a cause dear to their hearts.

“This year we’re focusing not just on recovery from addiction, but also building resilience in the community. And what that looks like,” said Oscar. He explained the convention includes many local organizations, as well as a series of speakers, all intended for the common cause of connecting these people to each other.

“This is a community event. It’s about collaboration and partnerships and how we can help individuals, communities and the system collaborating together for better overall outcomes in mental health,” said Oscar.

Turnout is where they expected it to be, said executive director Lauren Healey, and they’re pleased to see attendees from not just professionals who work with people in regards to mental health and addiction, but also members of municipal government, educators, and students from Medicine Hat College.

This increase in diversity of those interested is likely because of the added scope for building resiliency, said Oscar, as that is something everyone can and needs to do in order to be able to improve their lives and the lives of the people around them.

Originally, the conference was intended to be hosted in September, which is Recovery Month, but ultimately had to be postponed to better suit the availability of those attending.

“People really like that we’re doing it in November,” said Oscar. “Because everybody seems to focus on September for recovery, and then the other 11 months kind of get forgotten about, so it’s nice to continue this conversation throughout the year.”

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