Annual recovery summit aims to explain the unexplainable

Melinda White is one of the organizers of the fifth annual “Coming Together, There is Hope” substance use addiction summit in Essex Junction on Friday, July 31, 2026. Photo by Glenn Russell/VTDiggerESSEX JUNCTION — Trying to explain substance use disorder to someone who hasn’t gone through it is like trying to explain the color red to someone who’s colorblind. That’s what David Riegel explained to a full room of about 50 people, who filled rows of chairs