Recovery rally highlights progress, hope during recovery month

COLUMBIA, S.C. (WCSC) — People in recovery, treatment providers, advocates and community leaders from across South Carolina gathered at the State House Thursday for the Recovery United Celebration and Rally as part of National Recovery Month.

The event focused on celebrating recovery, reducing the stigma surrounding addiction and connecting people with support and treatment resources.

Recovery advocates say South Carolina has made progress in its battle against addiction, but more work remains.

Across the State House grounds, organizations shared resources and personal stories aimed at encouraging those struggling with substance use disorder to seek help.

“No matter what your story was or is, it’s not the end. You can move forward,” Dustin Walters of Access FAVOR said.

Participants said a key part of the event was showing people they are not alone.

“We’re here to offer support for somebody else that might feel they’re all alone like a lot of us used to,” Dave Pruett of FAVOR Upstate said.

Advocates point to signs of progress in South Carolina’s fight against addiction. State data show South Carolina recorded 1,481 overdose deaths in 2024, a 31% decrease from the previous year. However, fentanyl remained a factor in more than 900 overdose deaths statewide.

Supporters also highlighted continued investments in recovery programs. In 2025, the South Carolina Opioid Recovery Fund Board distributed more than $40 million to communities across the state. The funding helped connect 46,000 adults and 1,900 children to treatment services and supported overdose prevention efforts.

Those dollars have helped organizations such as Access FAVOR in the Myrtle Beach area and FAVOR Upstate expand services and support people in recovery.

For Walters, recovery has become an opportunity to help others.

“I know that God created me for a purpose, and I believe the things I went through and the experiences I had in my life led me to my purpose,” Walters said. “That’s how I make sense of my life, giving back to other people and showing people recovery is possible.”

Pruett said his own recovery journey inspired him to help others facing similar struggles.

“One day I realized I was supposed to do something different, so I started this journey,” Pruett said. “It opened up a whole other career for me that doesn’t feel like a job because somebody was there to help me once upon a time, and that’s all I want to do for somebody else, help them.”

Advocates say their work will continue beyond Recovery Month. As lawmakers prepare to return to Columbia in January, they say they will keep pushing for funding and policies that expand access to treatment, prevention and recovery programs across South Carolina.