I’m Karhlton Moore, Director of the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of Justice Programs’ Bureau of Justice Assistance.
It’s my honor to welcome you to Recovery Month.
Recovery Month is a celebration of the determination, bravery, and hard work of the thousands of Americans who are in recovery from substance use and the dedicated people supporting them along their journeys.
During Recovery Month each September, we honor their stories and call attention to the numerous resources and initiatives administered by BJA that are equipping American communities with effective practices to combat the substance use crisis.
The Comprehensive Opioid, Stimulant, and Substance Use Program, or COSSUP, is BJA’s and the U.S. Department of Justice’s largest substance use-related program and provides grants to more than 500 communities nationwide.
This year, Recovery Month directly follows the annual COSSUP National Forum, where more than 1000 COSSUP grantees, leading treatment experts, and national leaders convened to learn just how far we’ve come in arming American communities with the tools they need to combat substance use. It was a truly inspiring event.
We are continuing that momentum into Recovery Month, by releasing more than 50 pieces of content and resources for the field on COSSUP’s website.
The resources – webinars, podcasts, publications, online courses, and announcements – will cover five core themes. Taken together, these resources demonstrate the breadth of support that COSSUP and BJA provide to the field and showcase the varied needs and experiences of those working toward recovery.
At the heart of the COSSUP’s Recovery Month celebration is the Champions of Recovery video series. The Champions of Recovery showcases the inspiring stories of the change taking place across the country, community by community.
Each day a new Champion video is added to the COSSUP Recovery Month website, giving voice to the countless hours of work that make recovery possible. Coupled with the valuable resources added to the website daily, the message is clear: prevention works, treatment is effective, and people can, and do, recover.
In closing, I encourage you to visit the COSSUP website, at www.cossup.org, to learn how COSSUP is providing new hope in the battle against substance use.
Finally, for anyone out there newly embarking on your journey towards recovery, those of you new to recovery, those who are shining examples of sustained recovery, to every family member and friend supporting someone on their journey, and to every hard-working practitioner: Thank you. Thank you for inspiring us, for giving us hope and for your life-saving contributions to the work.
