Rick Carpenter is a Peer Specialist in Pueblo and a member of the Your Words Have Power campaign. His story is one of persistence and gratitude, and one that you have to hear. Rick shares his successes and bumps along the road of recovery in a very personal installment of the Your Words Have Power podcast series.

To learn more about the campaign, visit pueblohealth.org!

With Spring in the air, now is the time to protect your pets from rabies. Scott and Caitlin, who work for with the Zoonotic Disease team at PDPHE, join the podcast to share information and resources to protect your pets this season. They give a feel for what happens in the Lab at PDPHE and answer questions about some common rabies-carrying animals. Learn more about rabies and other animal-to-human diseases at pueblohealth.org!

Denita Kessack, a peer specialist at Health Solutions, now uses her personal journey through recovery to help others on a daily basis. Listen to the latest installment of the Your Words Have Power series and help change the stigma that surrounds substance use and recovery!

Learn more about the campaign and read more stories at pueblohealth.org.

Arthur Chavez, a member of the Your Words Have Power campaign, joins the podcast to discuss his past struggles with addiction and share his words of encouragement to those in need of support. For more information about the campaign, visit pueblohealth.org and search for Your Words Have Power. If you missed the first two installments of the series, listen to Sam Pino and Anne Cabello as well!

The Your Words Have Power campaign is designed to reduce stigma and raise awareness about substance use disorder in Pueblo County. One member of the campaign, Sam Pino, joins the podcast to discuss her journey and how she uses her experiences to empower others. For more information about the campaign, visit pueblohealth.org!

Your Words Have Power features unique stories from individuals living in Pueblo County who have previously struggled with substance use disorders and experienced stigma and discrimination but, regardless, have entered the journey to recovery. Anne Cabello struggled with substance use disorder, but through determination and support from her family, she now uses her experience as a way to help others. 

For more information about the campaign, or to see more stories, visit https://county.pueblo.org/public-health-department/your-words-have-power.

In Part Three of the "Conversations with the Coalition" series, Kyle Meltzer and Christine Charron from the Southern Colorado Health Network discuss their role in the community and within the coalition. Hear about their ideas for increasing testing and treatment in Pueblo as well as their unique approach to de-stigmatizing sexual health conversations.

Jen Bartell, the forensic nurse coordinator at Parkview, stops by the podcast to discuss the Mobilization and Prevention of STIs coalition in Pueblo. The work she does on a daily basis is so deeply impacted by sexual health education, and Jen shares valuable insight with the coalition, and the community, on a daily basis. Check out the second part of our four-part series here!

Conversations with the Coalition will be a four-part series discussing sexual health and reducing the spread of STIs in Pueblo County. By openly discussing sexual health, we can reduce the stigma around sexually transmitted infections and begin to work toward solutions. In the first part of the series, hear from Rich Lane, Practice Manager at Champions Family Medicine and member of the coalition to Mobilize and Prevent STIs.

Devin Klock, a student at Pueblo East High School, and Niko Mora, a student at Pueblo County High, serve as CTC (Communities That Care) Youth Advisors. Their voice is critical when making decisions that have an impact on their community. In the newest episode of Pueblo's Health, hear about how trusted adults paved the way and continue to impact the decisions they make in life and as Youth Advisors.

Pueblo's Health is a podcast by the Pueblo Department of Public Health and Environment.