Inspired by grief, artist’s collection fuels recovery program for women
The Women in Recovery collection, part of artist Helen Lavelle’s “Painter with a Purpose” initiative, will help fund special programs for women recovering from addiction and their loved ones.
As a person in long-term recovery herself, the artist understands the devastating toll addiction takes on the family. It was the untimely loss of her sister Alvie to the disease which led her to pick up her brushes again, after they lay dormant for ten years. Now she is directing a portion of the proceeds from her online art sales to places and programs that can help.
With first-hand insights into how addiction weighs especially heavy on women, Lavelle sought help 34 years ago and joined a program dedicated to supporting people who were affected by the problem of alcoholism in a relative or a friend. “The stigma associated with addiction remains unparalleled. We are a nation in need of help. COVID-19 has had a profound impact in this arena. Social isolation, job loss, economic insecurity, and all-consuming fear has fueled substance abuse nationwide,” she says.
This is not the first time Lavelle has stepped up to help. With an accomplished career in advertising, she has been instrumental in launching, supporting and serving in a variety of capacities to address addiction. From treatment courts to foundations to program development, she has successfully formed coalitions of supporters who have made a difference.
Most recently, she served on a Vision Team to launch The Recovery Bank, a peer-driven recovery support center in Scranton, PA. She also developed their Healing Through The Arts initiative.
Lavelle’s latest effort, her Women in Recovery art collection shines a light on the need and shows how one artist can help.