THIS EVENT IS SOLD OUT — PLEASE DO NOT SHOW UP AT DOOR HOPING FOR A TICKET
A special fundraiser for Red House, the island’s Peer Recovery Support Center, in honor of Recovery Awareness Month
Followed by an Expert Panel Discussion live on our stage
The interconnected epidemics of anxiety, chronic illness and substance abuse are, according to Dr Gabor Maté, normal. But not in the way you might think.
One in five Americans are diagnosed with mental illness in any given year [1]. Suicide is the second most common cause of death in the US for youth aged 15-24 [2], and kills over 700,000 people a year globally [3] and 48,300 in the USA [4]. Drug overdose kills 81,000 in the USA annually [5]. The autoimmunity epidemic affects 24 million people in the USA [6]. What is going on?
“So much of what we call abnormality in this culture is actually normal responses to an abnormal culture. The abnormality does not reside in the pathology of individuals, but in the very culture that drives people into suffering and dysfunction.”
In The Wisdom of Trauma, we travel alongside physician, bestselling author and Order of Canada recipient Dr. Gabor Maté to explore why our western society is facing such epidemics. This is a journey with a man who has dedicated his life to understanding the connection between illness, addiction, trauma and society.
“Trauma is not what happens to you. Trauma is what happens inside you, as a result of what happens to you.”
Trauma is the invisible force that shapes our lives. It shapes the way we live, the way we love and the way we make sense of the world. It is the root of our deepest wounds. Dr. Maté gives us a new vision: a trauma-informed society in which parents, teachers, physicians, policy-makers and legal personnel are not concerned with fixing behaviors, making diagnoses, suppressing symptoms and judging, but seek instead to understand the sources from which troubling behaviors and diseases spring in the wounded human soul.
OUR PANELISTS
Robert Cropper has been in recovery for 33 years with 15 years of continuous sobriety. As a trained Pastry Chef he owned a cafe in Vineyard Haven and managed high end retail jobs before training to be a Life Coach. He began his Recovery Coach career in 2017; as Recovery Coach Supervisor in 2018 and as Director of Recovery Management Services in 2021. He believes that, truly, the opposite of addiction is connection. He firmly believes that there are many paths to recovery and if we do something everyday for our recovery we will be a success.
Molly Purves is a licensed clinician who specializes in addiction issues. She has worked at Island Counseling Center for 5 years. She is also an island actor and has appeared in many shows at the Playhouse and is part of the Shakespeare for the Masses company. She is grateful for the opportunity to serve on this panel with such wonderful people.
Brian Morris is a Mental Health/Substance Use Disorder Access Coordinator for Island Health Care. He is a recent recipient of a Masters in Rehabilitation Counseling from UMass Boston’s School of Global Inclusion & Social Development. Before coming to Island Health Care, he was Supervisor of Recovery Coach program at MVCS. He is a certified Peer Recovery Coach, a Community Health Worker and was awarded a Martha’s Vineyard Vision Fellowship in both 2016 and 2019.
Kathleen M. Burns-Power M.Ed, LMHC is currently a lead clinician at Island Counseling Center, who also oversees the New Path II program, an intensive group program designed for the islander who is in early stages of recovery, while one is re-anchoring into their life after rehab. Kathy has over 30 years experience working in the field of addiction/dual diagnosis (addiction and mental health) /trauma related therapy, having worked in community mental health centers in greater Boston area, and also the Worcester area, that also included a private counseling practice. Kathy has been serving the MV community through ICC, along with a modest private practice here on MV.
Eric Johnson is a clinical social worker in private practice in Vineyard Haven. He draws from a wide variety of therapeutic modalities, with a special focus on Internal Family Systems.
