The New York Recovery Community Coalition is a Recovery Community Organization (RCO) with a mission to educate the New York City and surrounding counties about the impact of addiction on individuals and families and the many pathways to recovery. Members are faith-based organizations and recovery/prevention programs that seek to strengthen communities by combining resources to support individuals and families in recovery.

We recently had the opportunity to speak with NYRCC Administrative Assistant, Rachelle Brown about her involvement with the group and its activities. Rachelle began working with NYRCC as an intern during Graduate School and tells us that she quickly developed a passion about the recovery community and about the coalition’s ability to bring people together, to share resources with each other and to build real momentum for the recovery movement overall. You can hear Rachelle’s passion and commitment to NYRCC and to the recovery community in her voice.

The Coalition pursues its mission through a variety of outreach and education activities, resource and information sharing and advocating on behalf of key issues critical to individuals and families in recovery. FOR-NY recently joined the Coalition for its quarterly Town Hall meeting hosted by the Church of the Ascension on the impact of mass incarceration and addiction on the family. (The next Town Hall – Hunting the Silent Killers in our Communities: Prevention, Treatment & Recovery for those impacted by HIV / AIDS and Hepatitis C is scheduled for May 9th at the AIDS Center of Queens County.)

​NYRCC was born out of the 2010 Substance Abuse & Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) Community Leaders and Interfaith Partnership Summit, “One Voice, One Community and One Purpose” which brought together 16 teams of community and faith-based leaders from across the nation; each representing communities with high prevalence rates of mental health and or substance use disorders. Representatives of several faith-based agencies based in New York City participated in the summit and after three days of insightful presentations, intense discussions and workshops focused on the needs of individuals and families affected by substance use and mental health disorders and co-occurring illnesses like HIV/AIDS and the intrinsic value of collaborative efforts, the group agreed to form an umbrella coalition to address common concerns. Upon returning from Washington, the individuals who participated in the summit met with other community organizations to share what they had learned and the New York Recovery Community Coalition was born.

Today, its goals are as follows:

  • To strengthen and enrich the lives of individuals and families on their pathways to recovery
  • To promote unity and healing in our communities
  • To collaborate with local government agencies
  • To seek partnerships with private sector businesses and faith-based organization
  • To educate our community regarding the recovery process and successful re-integration into the community
  • To share resources and exchange services to benefit families affected by substance abuse and mental health issues
  • To advocate for positive media coverage
  • To exhibit integrity and competence in all our endeavors

Interested in learning more or getting involved with NYRCC? Attend one of their monthly meetings (held on the first Thursday of the month) at NYS OASAS – 501 Seventh Avenue, New York, New York or contact Co-Chairs Rev. Dr. Gwen Hadley-Hall and Renee Artis at [email protected]. You can also visit NYRCC on the web at www.nyrcc.org and on Facebook at NY Recovery Community Coalition.