Founded in 2008, Sobermiut: Reviving Our Spirit is an Anchorage-based non-profit that seeks to establish a network of services and healthcare for Alaska Natives relocating from the village to Anchorage. The organization hopes that by lessening the effects of culture shock, it can prevent substance abuse.
This is why March 2019 marks a historic victory for sobriety advocates like Nothstine. For the past 30 years, the members of the Alaska Natives for Sobriety Movement have been working through grassroots campaigns, like Sobermuit, to collect sobriety pledges and show the community that sober living is desirable. Now, they have the backing of the newly signed Senate Bill 208, which officially established March as Sobriety Awareness Month.
“…[It] may seem like a small gesture, but for many, it recognizes their achievement for a better lifestyle for themselves which will help foster a culture that is conscious of this State’s multi-faceted substance abuse challenge and how those challenges can ultimately be overcome,” Alaska State Senator Berta Gardner said in an April 28, 2018 press release.
One Alaskan who is leading the charge this month is Recover Alaska executive director Tiffany Hall. In recovery herself, Hall believes in the power of establishing a safe, inclusive community for those choosing to live a sober lifestyle.
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