Las Vegas Weekly

September 10, 2009 · 10:22 PM

Saturday’s NRC event at Cashman to be a celebration of recovery

By John Katsilometes

Nevada Recovery Celebration Chairwoman Lynn Tynan.

Photo: Evelio Contreras

A year ago, A&E filmed a documentary about recovery across the country. Producers selected one person to represent each state. From Nevada, they picked Lynn Tynan. For anyone who has known Lynn, the honor was no surprise -- the only question was if she’d have time to take part in the event in New York City.

Lynn’s a busy woman doing remarkable work as the director of the We Care recovery home for women, which has been a fixture of recovery in Las Vegas since 1946. Lynn herself wandered into We Care not as a prospective administrator, but as a woman reaching out for help 25 years ago as a new resident of Las Vegas. It’s a long way from there to here, and on her way back from New York last year, Lynn experienced an epiphany (or maybe it was turbulence) and thought to celebrate recovery in her own state the way it had just been celebrated in New York.

That was the spark for the first Nevada Recovery Celebration, set for 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. Saturday at Cashman Center. The celebration is free, and the event is a sort of indoor street fair for those interested in attending daylong workshops, panel discussions and 12-step meetings. Anyone who is seeking information about, or help recovering from, such societal scourges as alcoholism, crystal meth addiction and addiction to prescription medications are welcome to stop by and see what the recovery community in Las Vegas is all about.

“We want to show people that you can have fun in recovery,” says Tynan, who considers herself lucky to be alive today and has resonated that gratitude by helping thousands of women recover through We Care over the past two decades. “I sometimes can’t believe the life I have today, and I need to give back.” (Lynn tells her story on last week’s episode of “Our Metropolis” and in the accompanying video segment shot by videographer Evelio Contreras.)

Guest speakers and entertainers include Nevada first lady Dawn Gibbons, who's taken the lead in the fight against the alarmingly fast-growing crystal meth problem in this state; addiction specialist Dr. Joseph Bradley; longtime Elvis impressionist Steve Connolly; two-time Indy 500 champion All Unser Jr.; and vocalist Sarah Todora and the Primary Purpose Band. Gibbons’ talk begins at 9:15 a.m.

There is but one requirement of attendees: They must be clean and sober to participate. Seems like a simple request, but you’d be surprised, and the event is designed to help those who can’t live with that simple principle.

Follow John Katsilometes on Twitter at twitter.com/JohnnyKats.

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