Watertown Urban Mission’s 13th Run for Recovery set for September
WATERTOWN — The annual Run for Recovery, benefitting the Urban Mission Bridge Program, will return to the Alex T. Duffy Fairgrounds Sept. 10.
The Bridge Program helps people with substance use disorders by providing treatment options and case management. Clients are sent to the Bridge Program by a court or treatment program to help them restore and rebuild their lives.
Anthony Matthews, director of the program, said Bridge is an ATI program, which stands for Alternative to Incarceration, and serves the same purpose as probation. The difference is that the program is substance use-focused. People in the program either have a history of substance use or their conviction is associated with their addiction.
Mr. Matthews has been with the program since the end of 2016, and has been with the mission since 2012. He’s had a hand in all the runs since he started with the mission, but said the event has really become his “baby” over the past few years.
“The biggest thing that we want to do is we want to make sure that we bring awareness to how addiction is affecting our community,” Mr. Matthews said. “We want to remember the individuals who have lost their lives to addiction and we want to celebrate people who have found sobriety, so it’s a mixed bag that day, but it’s a really good day.”
The event, which begins at 9 a.m. with check-in starting at 7 a.m., will again include 5K and 10K runs and a 5K walk. Early registration is $25 and same-day registration will be $30. The runs will be professionally timed with prizes in various categories.
Those who register for the event by Aug. 27 will receive a free T-shirt. Teams are also welcome, with a maximum of six participants per team. Online registration can be found at wdt.me/RecoveryRun22.
Mr. Matthews said participation over the past couple of years has been around 350 to 400 people.
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