Tabby Stokes and Alizz Quarles will take the Esther Short Park stage again on Labor Day to kick off the 23rd annual Hands Across the Bridge event with a hopeful message that’s worth repeating: Recovery from addiction is achievable.
The event invites Vancouver and Portland residents in all stages of addiction recovery to join hands across the Interstate 5 Bridge. The event kicks off National Recovery Month, which raises awareness of mental health and addiction and celebrates individuals in recovery.
Best friends Patty Katz and Louise Wedge started Hands Across the Bridge two decades ago. They decided to stand on top of the Burnside Bridge at daybreak to celebrate that they were no longer under the bridge because of their addictions — but rather on top of the bridge in celebration of their recovery. That day was a catalyst for what has become an annual event.
Both Katz and Wedge died in recent years. Stokes, Quarles and other Hands Across the Bridge organizers work hard to keep their legacy alive.
If You Go
What: Hands Across the Bridge
When: 10 a.m. to noon Monday
Where: Start at Esther Short Park (605 Esther St., Vancouver), then head to Interstate 5 Bridge
Admission: Free
“They were best friends, and we are best friends. I think that’s special,” Stokes said.
Next generation
Planning for the event begins in January and includes more than 200 people from both Washington and Oregon.
The organizers’ mission includes building the next generation of leadership in the recovery community. The event chairwoman bestows a Leader Extraordinaire Award to someone who had helped with planning.
Quarles recalls receiving the award from Katz.
“That felt good — that feeling that I belonged to something that was bigger than me … and my work has an impact,” Quarles said.
Several years later, Quarles joined the Hands Across the Bridge board and gave out the award for the first time.
“I was like, ‘This is the moment. This is the moment that person feels seen, feels heard, knows that they are valuable and the work they’ve done has purpose,’ ” Quarles said.
As the event’s speakers introduce themselves, they say “I’m in long-term recovery,” followed by how long — from a year to decades — they’ve stayed away from drugs or alcohol.
Stokes celebrated 18 years in recovery in February, and Quarles will celebrate 12 years in January.
“I did it as a young mom. You feel like, ‘How can I support (my children)? How can I end the cycle and do something different?’ ” Quarles said. “It is a tough, tough road to break that cycle.”
Now, Quarles works with youth as prevention and intervention specialist at Vancouver Public Schools. Stokes is a school-based mental health supervisor at the public school district and teaches prevention education at Clark College.
“I was a young person that came into recovery, and I think that’s been part of the biggest reasons why I’ve been so passionate about serving youth,” Stokes said.
Quarles said when she was a student, she didn’t have access to resources that would have helped her.
“I want to make sure those kinds of services are there for youth and families,” Quarles said.
Both said their work organizing Hands Across the Bridge is year-round, but some of their most memorable moments happen on the Esther Short Park stage.
“We get so emotional about the impact that we get to have,” Stokes said. “Now, more than ever, we can really say that recovery is for everyone. We see it every year.”
