Recovery is Possible: Inclusion, Community, and Connection

"The opposite of addiction is connection,” said Graham Baty, who is in long-term recovery and serves with Horizon Renewal Center. He shared this point alongside local practitioners, law enforcement, educators, and people with lived experience at a Sebastian County Opioid Task Force meeting focused on what moves the needle in recovery and prevention.

From the frontline, Addy Henry of the Fort Smith Police Department’s Crisis Intervention Unit asserted that isolation is one of the greatest risks for someone struggling with substance use. Her claim was that integrating people back into community—where they are seen, heard, and loved—can be lifesaving.

Her team often arrives after a crisis has already occurred, but they don’t come alone; peer recovery specialists ride with officers to build trust in the moment it matters most.

Henry underscored how education, follow-up, and collaboration with community partners change trajectories and highlighted Good Samaritan protections—clarifying that the individual overdosing is not treated as a suspect—which can be the difference between a call for help and a fatal hesitation. She also pointed to Shield our Youth, a department initiative that provides mentorship to address root causes within the home before they escalate.

Baty framed the conversation around dignity and follow-through. “Recovery is not linear. It is a strength-based approach. We have to treat people with compassion and dignity,” he said. Shame, he noted, doesn’t work. What does is a web of relationships and practical support that persists beyond intake.

“We can give them all the tools in the world, but if we don’t give them the follow-up and continued care, it’s tough to thrive.” Baty emphasized family as a starting point—connection that stabilizes today and shapes tomorrow.

Aaron Bunch of Ideal Options reminded the room that Opioid Use Disorder (OUD) is a medical diagnosis.

“There is a physiology to this. There is a physiology to addiction,” he said, explaining how exposure to opioids rewires the brain and why cravings feel less like wanting a slice of cake and more like the body’s urgent demand for food after prolonged starvation.

Bunch explained the evidence base for FDA-approved medications for opioid use disorder and pushed back against stigma that keeps people from treatments that work.

“I’m tired of people dying because of stigma,” he said. Recovery takes time because the brain takes time to heal. Prevention, meanwhile, must keep pace with how young people actually access substances today; he urged schools and parents to prioritize education, including awareness of Good Samaritan protections for minors who call for help in an overdose emergency: “Education in the schools is such a paramount thing that needs to be done.”

Schools are already a critical hub for prevention and coordinated care, said Melinda Hyatt, LMSW, with Fort Smith Public Schools. Students with mental health conditions such as ADHD or autism face increased risk for substance use, and they need specialized, co-occurring treatment programs that address both sets of needs together. Hyatt encouraged families to lean on school resources—counselors, social workers, and nurses are in every building and can convene team meetings quickly.

Kylia Eastman, in long-term recovery and now working with Harbor House, spoke to the persistence recovery requires and the complexity beneath substance use.

“It can be hard seeing someone go through something like that because from the outside you know what they have to risk.” Substance use, she said, is rarely just about alcohol or narcotics; family dynamics and deeper pain often sit underneath. People need to be reminded of their own motivations and supported to keep moving forward.

“From my experience, it takes more than second chances sometimes. It takes multiple chances.” She called on employers and landlords to extend second chances to people with records tied to substance use, noting how “inclusion, community, and connection” drive sustained change long after the acute crisis has passed.

Her encouragement to the community and professionals alike was practical and urgent: “Keep showing up to things like this.” Knowing who is doing what—and staying in relationship—is one of the most powerful ways to support recovery.

The work of recovery and prevention is complex, but the path forward is clear: connection is the strategy. When neighbors, practitioners, schools, and public safety align around compassion, dignity, and evidence-based care, recovery becomes not only possible but probable—and prevention becomes something we do together, every day.