Drug issue focus of May 2 gathering at community college

LACONIA — Lakes Region Community College will play host on May 2 to a community conversation on substance misuse, with participants including recovery providers and people who have personally struggled with addiction.

Larissa Baia, president of the college, said this is the first in a series of gatherings the college is planning to discuss major local issues.

“One of our strategic goals is to build awareness of the college and its services and programs among the communities we serve,” she said. “Part of that is making people aware of what we do and fostering broader conversations of interest about things that matter in our community and finding creative and productive solutions.”

Roger Carroll, managing editor of the Laconia Daily Sun, said the newspaper is doing a series of stories about substance misuse as part of a “solutions journalism” approach that not only identifies issues, but examines those who are working at solving those problems.

“We hope spotlighting different providers – especially through the stories of people who have been through the recovery process – gives strength to others who need help and encourages them to reach out," Carroll said. "An important part of that process is trying to foster a dialogue across our communities, and we encourage people to come to the forum to ask questions, get answers, and help the Lakes Region look for solutions to the addiction crisis that has wreaked a terrible toll on too many families."

Partners in this effort include Navigating Recovery of the Lakes Region, The Doorway at Lakes Region General Hospital, Bahder Behavioral Services and Riverbank House.

Representatives of these organizations have spoken to the newspaper for its series, which has touched on medically assisted recovery, long-term residential recovery and ways to get help, with an emphasis on personal success stories.

Participants in the series have been invited to the conversation at Lakes Region Community College, which will be open to the public and held at 5:30 p.m. May 2 in the Academic Commons.

The event will include a period in which the public can hear from and ask questions of the participants.