Recovery Takes Center Stage During Local Celebration of Hope
Against a backdrop of live music and recovery testimonies, the Erie County Office of Drug and Alcohol Abuse amplified hope and healing in a region that has spent years confronting addiction. The office's Rock for Recovery event on May 23 held at the 1020 Collective, included poetry, artwork, and musical performances by artists in recovery like Matthew Crays, Tyler Smilo, Dominick Dececco, and Colicchie, changing the tune from loss and stigma to one of resilience.
"Hopefully this fosters hope and changes the stigma about what people living in recovery and with substance use disorders looks like," said Brandy Cortes, event organizer and lead project coordinator for the Erie County Regional Recovery Hub. Organizers said the event was meant to cover all aspects of recovery — there were recovery resources for individuals struggling with substance use disorder, artwork displayed from patients in recovery and from local students learning about prevention, and a space to remember those who have passed away.
Smilo of Smilo & the Ghost said he came to Erie in 2012 through the detention system and is now over seven years clean and sober. He said that addicts are some of the most intelligent people he's met, and if they can harness that strength, it can become a superpower. With original songs like "Blood of my Father," he addressed the generational affliction with addiction that he experienced. Thanks to recovery, though, he said "I'm able to be there for my son today."
Dominic Dececco and Tyler Smilo perform to a sold-out crowd as part of a celebration for hope and healing in Erie County.
The event included free Henna tattoos, caricature portraits, and live painting from artists like Antonio Howard, who advocates for community connection and dialogue through art. The event also included mocktails, making it a safe space for individuals in recovery. Erie resident Valerie Davis, who has been in recovery for 15 years, feels that downtown is typically centered around drinking, saying, "it's everywhere." She and another resident, Stacy Grenat, who will soon be a re-entry specialist, said there are a lot of people with substance use disorder in the area, but there's a lack of events catered to them. When they saw the advertisements for Rock for Recovery, they felt compelled to go. "I think it's amazing that they're doing something where there's no drinks or alcohol involved and brings everyone together," Davis said.
A handful of certified recovery specialists were honored by the Erie County Office of Drug and Alcohol Abuse for their commitment to the recovery community. Valerie Perkins, who opened Erie County's first DDAP-licensed recovery home, said it's never too late. After spending 25 years in addiction, Perkins said she sought help at the age of 58 and has been clean for 13 years. She recalled feeling hopeless, homicidal, and suicidal while being homeless, and using substances before she got on a path to earn her bachelor's and master's degrees and help others find their paths to recovery.
"Who would've thought that a cracked-out, hopeless drug addict like I was could actually come back and offer something to somebody?" she said. "It can happen to anybody. All of these possibilities are out there for all of us." To all the people in the audience, she emphasized that a life without daily pain and suffering is possible. "You're a miracle," she concluded.
The event comes as the county coroner recently reported that the number of recorded fatal drug overdoses in 2025 was 42, dropping from 73 in 2024, marking the lowest number of accidental drug-related deaths in the county since 2011.
Rock for Recovery is partially funded through a grant from the Pennsylvania Department of Drug and Alcohol Program (DDAP). In 2023, DDAP announced $310,000 to Erie County Office of Drug and Alcohol Abuse to establish a regional recovery hub to enhance resources for and promote recovery.
The "hub" is meant to provide technical assistance and collaborate with a variety of community entities, sectors, and systems to enhance a recovery-supportive community and facilitate recovery support service delivery. Cortes said the hub works with organizations in the area to support individuals in recovery, like Purrista Cat Cafe's Paws for Comfort event or Cafe 7-10's Healing Art of Poetry workshops. Three years into the regional recovery hub grant and Cortes said there are more things to come. She said the hub launched Erie County's first recovery website that includes a community asset map. The map identifies substance order treatment resources, where they are located, what services they offer, and how to access those services.
Find the map and other recovery-centric resources at recoveriepa.org.
Chloe Forbes is a local journalist. Reach her at chloeforbes14@gmail.com
