The Recovering Together Family Fall Festival welcomed over 100 individuals living in recovery to the Healthy Communities of Clinton County Coalition grounds on Monday evening to form new memories with the help of the Trinity Hope Center.
The fall festival helps set the stage for two of the most anticipated celebrations that will become themes for the family nights this year, Thanksgiving in November and Christmas in December. The fall festival encouraged families to partake in activities, such as painting pumpkins, playing yard games, making s’mores, relaxing by the fire and much more. The families were also treated to a chili dinner, raffle baskets and craft kits to continue making memories together while in recovery.
“They painted pumpkins, they played games, they won raffle baskets, they made s’mores and relaxed by the fire and enjoyed everyone’s company,” Chris Ward, Trinity Hope Director, said. “Then, everyone went home with a craft and a pumpkin to continue making new fun and healthy memories at home.”
The family nights are geared toward helping those in recovery and those seeking to embark on the journey to recovery form bonds that extend beyond programming while also creating new memories for individuals, families and children without the interference of substance use disorder.
“We want to make sure that everyone understands that if they’re living in recovery in the Clinton County or the City of Frankfort area or striving to do so, these events are for them,” Ward said. “It’s free, and it gives them an opportunity to network with people that are just like them to start building new support systems and new memories and not self-destructive ones.”
Next month, the family night will occur on Nov. 6 with a Thanksgiving dinner theme. The evening will provide families with a Thanksgiving meal, raffle baskets, Thanksgiving themed games and a thankfulness craft to continue the bonding experiences outside of the Trinity Hope walls. Families will be invited to partake in the Christmas family night on Dec. 4, which Ward described as one of the most anticipated events of the year at Trinity Hope with Christmas games, a meal and gifts for the community to enjoy.
Ward expressed that every event welcomes new and old faces into the mix, and he commented that many attendees are an extension of the recovery community and act as support systems for family members, friends and those in need of consistent encouragement.
“These events are completely open to the public for anybody that would like to come and either support recovery or network with other individuals,” Ward said. “Addiction is a disease, treatment is more available than it’s ever been and you are certainly worthy of recovery.”
The family nights act as a separate experience from the programming available at Trinity Hope Center, such as the men’s cafe, women’s cafe, teen cafe, couples cafe and many more, as the events stray from traditional programming to further encourage familial bonding and community partnerships to blossom. Ward encouraged those in recovery and those seeking to enter recovery to contact the Trinity Hope Center at 765-659-6063 or visit the center at 806 N. Columbia St. in Frankfort to explore the programming options available and learn more about upcoming community events.
Ward thanked the United Way for Clinton County for its continued support of the family nights financially, and Ward extended gratitude toward Clear Weather Farm in Colfax for its donation of 100 pumpkins for the fall festival.