St. Vincent’s Clients to Participate in Recovery Games
Events Include Track and Field, Swimming, Basketball

   SAN DIEGO — Fr. Joe Carroll, president of St. Vincent de Paul Village, and 150 clients from his downtown shelter will participate in the opening ceremonies of the Recovery Games on Saturday, May 11, at 8 a.m. at San Diego High School’s Balboa Stadium.

   Individuals from as many as 30 addiction-recovery programs will participate in the ceremonies, entering the stadium behind banners bearing this year’s event theme, "Recovery 4 U in 2002."

   The games are organized by the city’s Parks and Recreation Department Disabled Services Program and includes events such as basketball, swimming card games, track and field and horseshoes, to name a few.

   "The games offer our clients the unique opportunity to enjoy their new-found sobriety while interacting and engaging in healthy competition with others who are also in recovery," Fr. Joe says. "It provides them two very important lessons: You can achieve anything you want and, secondly, you can do it sober."

   Fr. Gil Gentile, a chemical-dependency counselor at St. Vincent’s, says the games are, for many Village clients, the first time they’ll be having fun in a clean and sober environment.
"Participating in the games is a way to build self-respect, self-esteem, self-discipline and a positive attitude," Gentile says.

   For more information on this year’s Recovery Games, call (619) 233-8500, extension 1314.

# # #