(music) hello, i'm ivette torres, and welcome to the road to recovery 2011 , a showcase of events. throughout this year, millions of americans have been making their voices heard by telling their story of recovery from substance use and mental disorders. they know that they are not alone in their journey of recovery, that family, friends, and entire communities

are walking alongside them, to help them lead healthy and rewarding lives. as the power of recovery becomes a reality for them, they're learning how important they are to their family, friends, and community. more and more, we can all see that prevention works, treatment is effective, and people can and do recover. recovery benefits everyone. for more than 20 years, national recovery month has honored and celebrated persons in recovery and helped to educate and inform others about the process of recovery. we know that almost 1 in 10 americans struggle with a substance use disorder and that about 1 in 5 americans has a mental health problem. treatment and recovery are the pathway forward for these individuals, a pathway leading to improved family relationships, health and well-being, hope for

the future, and purpose in the sustainment of their recovery. as we hear and see their stories, we will learn that recovery happens through many different pathways and that, in every journey, recovery depends on supportive relationships marked by care, support, and respect. this year marks the 22nd year of recovery month , and this year we have broadened it to incorporate recovery from mental health problems along with substance use disorders. recovery should be the common goal, whether one is dealing with mental or substance use disorders or both. i encourage you to visit recoverymonth.gov to learn more about the celebrations, events, and the 2011 theme. join the voices for recovery. recovery benefits everyone. this is an important effort, to try to make sure that we put the

light on recovery from substance abuse and mental illnesses. for the first time, we've invited people in recovery from mental illnesses to join the substance abuse community, in this celebration of accomplishment and achievement. these are actually very exciting and challenging times. the science that prevention works, that treatment is effective, and that people do in fact recover continues to grow. we've achieved parity and equity in law, or at least we've achieved the law, workin' on the implementation. now it's time to achieve a quality in service. since day one, this administration has been focused on applying sound, research-based drug policies geared toward protecting americans from the threats that drugs pose to public health and safety. i spent my entire career in law enforcement. i know we can't arrest our way out of our drug problem, and that's why our policies are based on the recognition that

drug addiction is a disease, that it can be successfully prevented, and it can be treated. and simply put, the tragic wreckage wrought by drug use can be prevented before it becomes a criminal justice or a public health emergency. i stand here today as a living example that a better life is possible. i realize that in grace and wellness could lead me to improved mental health and physical health. as recently as 4 years ago, after having struggled with clinical depression for my entire adult life, i was on the verge of giving up. the disgrace, shame, and stigma of my mental health problems had taken a toll on my mind and body. i had also suffered several strokes, and i lived every day with the effects of diabetes and hypertension. i just didn't think much of life. but then i was introduced to the wellness recovery action plan, a step-by-step program that many of you already know as wrap. my life has changed so much that

i wanted to share it with others. it's my passion in my personal and professional life. i'm now qualified to go around the world to share my knowledge and help others find their path to wellness and recovery as an advanced-level wrap facilitator. i was adopted at birth into a family with alcohol and drug or domestic violence issues. that was the beginning of the traumas and the stigma that was to follow me for the next three quarters of my life. i ran away from philadelphia to fort lauderdale when i was 15, and gave birth to my oldest daughter and was labeled a habitual runaway by judge mark speiser. over the next years, i struggled with my addiction, giving birth to a son and another daughter. finally, in my late thirties, i ended up homeless, living under bridges, and i finally started going to jail. it was jail that actually saved my life, because that is where i met broward county drug court judge marcia beach,

who loved me, and so i could love myself. she placed me in the sheriff's 90-day in-custody treatment program. the time there helped save my life. the last 30 days of the 90 days i did something i had never done before in my entire life. i made a plan. today, i'm an intern for intherooms.com. we are the world's largest recovery web site with over 260,000 people worldwide, sharing their experience, strength, and hope with each other, and it's powerful. today, i'd like to tell you that i'm an asset, not a liability. today, i'm a face and voice in and of recovery, and thank you for having me. (applause) on behalf of the president of the united states, the national alcohol and drug addiction recovery month, there is a proclamation. i will not trouble you to read the four or five paragraphs that are in here, but i think that-that when you

do get to see it and you see it up on the white house web site, it is particularly impressive that-the way he and this administration want to deal with this problem. and we could not be more proud to be partners with all of you and support you in every way that we can. thank you. (applause.) i think the national recovery month 's theme this year, "recovery benefits everyone," deserves just a little bit of thought. it's impossible, i think really, to think about a single occurrence, in which somebody gets well, or reclaims their health or vitality, or engages fully in life, or literally goes beyond a returning to an old state of health, and really goes, you've heard this already, really goes into a new state of-of life and hope and connects with others in meaningful ways. and when that happens, everybody, we as a whole, as a whole society, benefit.

i know we're in strange economic times, but many people need to hear about prevention, treatment, and recovery. we pay one way or another. we pay less if we facilitate prevention, treatment, and recovery. we pay more if we ignore them and assume that somebody else is going to take care of the problem. the problem is all of our problems, and the benefits go to all of us. none of us are here by accident. i come from a family with a lot of experience suffering the pains and the joys of recovery from alcoholism, from my father to-who-who recovered and-and enjoyed many happy years, as well as some other relatives; a son who did not. and we lost him due to alcohol. we come full circle in-in a number of ways. i had the pleasure, about 25 years ago, of also being an affiliate director for the council in southern arizona, and then in '91 started my own company 20 years ago now, jorgensen-britts group, and we attack it from

a couple of different angles. providing direct treatment back in the nineties, to now running full-service employee assistance programs, where we work to intervene in the disease and get folks into recovery before they lose everything. i'm bev haberle, and i'm a person in long-term recovery, and that means that for the past 40 years, i haven't used alcohol or any other mood-altering drugs. (applause) as a result of that, i have lived a remarkable, wonderful life. it's allowed me to give back, to help others. it's allowed me to be a wife, a mother, a productive citizen, as well as an elder in my church. so i'm truly grateful to be standing here today. my grandmother taught me a song that kind of saw me through a lot of the worst of my alcoholism, and i thought i'd just ask you to join me on it, because i think it's always a nice way to close any discussion about past, present, and future.