More than 200 people met Thursday at Operation UNITE’s first-ever Rural Health Opioid Project Provider Summit.

With several successful recovery stories, this summit was designed to provide hope to Eastern Kentucky communities and information on how they can help the opioid crisis.

When you have someone share their message on overcoming addiction, it gives a sense of hope to others that people can beat this disease.

Many at Thursday’s event hope that having a different approach to people fighting drug problems will take away the stigma of substance abuse disorders.