National Council on Substance Abuse (NCSA) is continuing its series of activities aimed at raising public consciousness about drug-related issues as it observes Drug Awareness Month.
Marietta Carrington, chief executive officer of the residential drug rehabilitation facilities Verdun and Marina House, underscored the importance of addressing mental health and substance abuse.
“We are trying to play our part in bringing awareness to mental health, substance use, abuse and addiction because oftentimes individuals see this as a behavioural challenge and not a disease of the brain.”
Noting the widespread impact of addiction and stressing the communal responsibility for fostering a healthy, safe environment, she told reporters: “When one person is ill, that affects a minimum of 15 people. Our goal is to ensure that as a community, this is a collective responsibility that we all must share.”
This year’s Drug Awareness Month theme, Strengthening Prevention, focuses on engaging with youth through outreach programmes. The NCSA has been involved in initiatives like Teen Intervene and Confident Me, tailored to address the unique challenges young people face as they transition from adolescence to adulthood.
A notable event of the month was a Calypso and Jazz fundraising concert held at the Frank Collymore Hall on Saturday night. Saxophonist Zukeli Inniss showcased his musical talent, performing R. Kelly’s The World’s Greatest, Damian Marvay’s Push and Go Through, and Frank Sinatra’s Fly Me to the Moon.
Saxophonist Zukeli Inniss
The performance by the St Leonard’s Boys Choir was well-received, while the collaboration between Saint Lucia’s Menell Delices, a former calypso monarch in her country, and local musician Simon Pipe added depth to the show. Delices delivered a poignant rendition of Natasha Bedingfield’s Recover and shared a self-penned track inspired by her journey through addiction.
Both artistes not only entertained but also shared personal narratives of overcoming addiction. Delices expressed gratitude for the transformative experience at Verdun and Marina House: “I thank you for making me a better person and giving me a brand-new life.”
Pipe recounted the challenges of addiction, acknowledging the support he received during his recovery journey.
“When addiction had completely taken hold of me… I gave up hope. I didn’t have any hope in myself, I didn’t believe in myself anymore,” he said.
“So many people here have been a part of my recovery,” Pipe said as he marked two years of sobriety. “Now that I have been clean for a little while I have been able to volunteer some of my time up there and I see it a little bit from their perspective. I think, ‘wow, this is completely thankless and the odds are stacked against you’. One in ten people recover and 85 per cent of addicts relapse in the first year. I was one of those people that relapsed, and I remember thinking, ‘I’m never going to get this’, and they kept believing in me. They kept telling me ‘you can get this’. It’s not an easy job that they are doing, and I really appreciate you coming out today.”
Menell Delices
The concert also paid tribute to founding NCSA visionaries Norman Barrow and Jan and Peter Boos, honouring their contributions to the organisation’s mission. (STT)
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