The Courage Center receives grant to fund local anti-stigma campaign

Lexington, S.C.

The Courage Center has received a grant totaling almost $50,000 from the South Carolina Department of Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse Services (DAODAS) to support strategies to prevent, and reduce the consequences of, opioid and stimulant misuse in South Carolina.

The Courage Center will conduct an opioid and stimulant stigma reduction campaign within six targeted “hotspots” in Lexington County that have consistently registered since March 2020 as areas experiencing the highest number of suspected overdoses. Campaign messaging will clarify that opioid and other substance use disorders are diseases and not moral failures or weaknesses. The impact of the campaign will be measured by online and telephone surveys conducted before the campaign begins and after it concludes.

Under this grant award, The Courage Center also will implement a safe prescription medication disposal strategy by distributing Deterra drug deactivation bags, and substance misuse treatment and recovery resource information, to at least 10 Midlands faith community houses of worship.

“We thank DAODAS for their support of our targeted stigma reduction campaign and Deterra distribution initiatives,” said The Courage Center Executive Director Adrienne Bellinger. “Stigma continues to be a huge barrier for those who desperately need to access treatment and recovery support services. We are confident that more individuals will seek help if there is greater understanding that addiction is a chronic brain disease and not a moral failing or lack of willpower. As understanding increases, our faith community partners need resources at their fingertips to minimize access to expired or unused prescriptions and maximize access to prevention, treatment, and recovery assistance.”