Sober Fest in Merced: Celebrating the road to recovery

Merced residents and agencies celebrated sobriety on Saturday during the county’s first Sober Fest.

The drug and alcohol awareness, prevention and recovery event was hosted by the the Merced County Sheriff’s Office, Probation Department and Behavioral Intervention Inc., among others. Several agencies and groups gathered at Applegate Park to promote local services available to fight substance abuse.

Deputy Probation Officer George Gallegos said the purpose of the event is to highlight the community’s collaboration. The event also served to bring families together who have gone through drug and alcohol abuse.

Gallegos said probation programs such as the Merced County Day Reporting Center and the jail’s in-custody behavioral intervention program have seen increasing success.

About 160 people have walked through the in-custody program in its year of existence, he said, and 26 have completed the program and graduated.

The program targets inmates during their last six months in jail, Gallegos said.

“We want to give them tools and prepare them for when they exit,” he said. “We want them to continue with the (behavioral intervention) outside.”

These efforts are important in the community, he said, noting that about 80 percent of inmates in Merced County are incarcerated for drug-related charges.

Jeff Serrato, a supervising case manager with the Behavioral Intervention program, said Saturday’s event was modeled after Sober Stock, a popular recovery event in Fresno. He expects Sober Fest to continue and grow next year.

“Instead of running away from the problem (of drugs and alcohol), we can do something about it,” Serrato said. “We can come together and help break the cycle.”

Atwater resident Jessica Martinez took her family to the event to celebrate 15 months of sobriety. She said her two young children are the reason why she escaped drugs and alcohol.

She recently graduated from an alcohol and drug dependency program of the county’s mental health department and is proud to be spending more time with her family, she said.

Sober Fest also featured live music and activities for children, as well as booths from community providers including the Rescue Mission, Worknet, Merced County mental health and more.

This story was originally published October 4, 2015 at 3:00 PM with the headline "Sober Fest in Merced: Celebrating the road to recovery."