Morehead City, NC— On June 28 from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m., Hope Mission of Coastal Carolina will kick off its 2024 “Peers on the Beach” campaign at the circle in Atlantic Beach. This summer, from June 28 through the Labor Day weekend beach goers along a five mile stretch of Atlantic Beach will have immediate access to some of North Carolina’s most trusted people in the recovery field—Certified Peer Support Specialists. Hope Mission’s peer support specialists will be out on the beach wearing teal shirts every Friday and Saturday, engaging with beach goers providing peer support and information to people in need of substance use and mental health recovery services in North Carolina.
In 2021 alone, NC experienced a 22% increase in overdose deaths. The Opioid crisis has been especially devastating in rural and coastal areas in North Carolina, areas of our state where treatment resources are often far and few. Peer Support Specialists play a critical role in helping individuals who are suffering from substance use addiction get into and stay in recovery.
“Hope Mission Peer Support Specialists work through our Peer Recovery Center and are some of the best out there. They are certified and have been trained well and are known and trusted among their peers in the addiction community especially in the coastal region,” says Pastor Gene McLendon, CEO of Hope Mission of Coastal Carolina.
“They have been in some of the darkest places and have walked that long road to recovery. We are overjoyed to be able to provide this service and be a very present help to people in time of need. We don’t believe in waiting for people to come to us because when you are in the throes of addiction, although you may want help, reaching out and asking for help can be hard. So, we are going to them. We know that drinking and using drugs is often a part of what some people believe is the fun of going to the beach. We want to be there when and where they will need us,” says McLendon.
The kickoff event on June 28 will have music, food, and guest speakers. NC DHHS Secretary Kody Kinsley will be the keynote speaker at the event. Other invited speakers include the Director Kelly Crosbie, NC Division of MHDDSUD, Joy Futtrell, CEO Trillium, Paolo del Vecchio, Director of the Office of Recovery, SAMHSA, Morehead City Mayor, Gerald Jones, Atlantic Beach Mayor Danny Navey, Carteret County Commissioners’ Chair Jimmy Farrington, Craven County Commissioners’ Chair Jason Jones, Carteret County Sherriff Asa Buck, III, and Craven County Sherriff Chip Hughes.
The event is free and open to the public.
