When you’re on the road to recovery from substance use, the support of a family can be a crucial key to whether you will be successful. The support of a community can have an even bigger impact.
That’s the theory behind Eastern Long Island Hospital Foundation’s ninth annual “Walk to Recovery” 5K Walk/Run, which will be held on Sunday, Sept. 14, 2025 at 9 a.m. at Indian Island County Park in Riverhead. Registration begins at 8 a.m.
Runners and walkers of all ages will join together in support of the hospital’s Behavioral Health Services, making a stand against the stigma surrounding mental health during National Recovery Month.
“Every day, more than 250 people in the United States lose their lives to drug overdoses — more 90,000 lives annually. The opioid crisis continues to devastate communities nationwide, including right here on the East End,” according to the Eastern Long Island Hospital Foundation. “Events like the Walk to Recovery bring much-needed awareness, hope, and resources to those impacted, while reminding us that treatment and recovery are possible.”
The statistics on recovery are heartening to those in the midst of coping with a substance abuse disorder, and their families.
Millions of Americans are living in recovery from substance use disorders, and tens of millions more report that they have recovered from a past problem. The 2023 National Survey on Drug Use and Health found that nearly half of those with a past-year substance use disorder consider themselves in recovery.
But, says the hospital, “a significant treatment gap remains, with only a fraction of those affected receiving the care they need. Barriers such as lack of access to care, insufficient screening, and persistent stigma contribute to this gap. Encouragingly, new strategies are being developed to expand treatment access, improve early identification, and reduce stigma, steps that can save lives and strengthen communities.”
Stony Brook Eastern Long Island Hospital is the only hospital in Suffolk County providing what’s known as integrated behavioral health care, with detoxification, rehabilitation, psychiatric services, and medical care under one roof.
Accredited by The Joint Commission and licensed by the New York State Office of Mental Health and the Office of Addiction Services and Supports, the hospital’s Quannacut program delivers a full range of inpatient and outpatient programs and services. Programs include safe medical detoxification, evidence-based rehabilitation, inpatient psychiatric care, and outpatient counseling with telehealth and in-person options.
More than 150 participants are expected to take to the new course for the 9th annual event, which had previously been held in Orient.
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