HIV & Oral Health Webinar: Substance Use Disorders and Oral Health in People Living with HIV
Hosted by the New England AIDS Education & Training Center (NEAETC)
Date: June 11, 2026 12:00pm ET
This presentation will focus on how co-occurring substance use disorders and HIV affect oral health with a particular focus on how these issues are addressed at a Healthcare for the Homeless Program in Boston.
Speakers:
Tara Prasad, DMD, MPH
Boston Health Care for the Homeless Program
Samantha Rawlins-Pilgrim, MD, MSc
Internal Medicine | Director of Population Health
Boston Health Care for the Homeless Program
Why Grief Still Feels So Heavy — And What Actually Helps. An overview of the Grief Recovery Method.
So many grieving people receive sympathy…
but very few receive actual tools for healing.
If grief still feels heavy — even years later — you are not doing it wrong.
Join me for a free virtual Lunch & Learn where we’ll talk about:
• Common myths about grief
• Why grief can feel “stuck”
• What emotional recovery can actually look like
• How The Grief Recovery Method® helps people move forward with support and structure
This is a gentle, educational space for anyone carrying loss.
Every Friday in June 2026 @12pm
Virtual | Free Registration
As SADOD prepares for IOAD 2026, we’re honored to work alongside those who have hosted IOAD events in the past and those who are thinking about hosting for the first time. Your leadership and compassion make this movement possible.
Let’s begin this year’s work together at our virtual IOAD 2026 Kickoff Meeting on Thursday, June 18, 2026, from 7:00–8:00 PM EST.
📅Thursday, June 18
⏰7:00–8:00 pm ET
💻On Zoom
🔗Register today at: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/jIfKLKJSQRWyVhtLdw9CQQ
We look forward to seeing you there and kicking off this important work together.
Grief is one of the most shared universal human experiences, and at the same time a truly unique personal experience. Grief is a natural emotional, somatic response to all kinds of loss, including but not limited to the death of someone. Grief can impact the physical, cognitive and spiritual realms of life. There are many different kinds of grief and many different ways people experience their grief. How one processes grief can often be influenced by culture and at times those around us. Direct Service Providers (DSPs) working in the overdose crisis are in a unique position often faced with multiple ongoing types of grief and loss. This workshop will explore this unique, shared experience of grief while providing education, resources, tips and tools for tending to grief.
After this workshop participants will be able to:
- Define different types of grief and loss, especially kinds experienced in DSP work
- Understand a brief history of death and dying in the US and how this influenced grieving culture
- Identify what grief can look or feel like in themselves and others
- Learn ways to support themselves and others in their grief
- Remember resources for grief peer support for DSPs
Anger, Rage, Fury, Reverence & Fiery Joy. Come As You Are🔥🌀
Join Wild Grief Offerings for their June, Rage, Reverence & Grief virtual Gathering to honor some of the stagnant muck & fuckery that blocks our presence, inner knowing & access to Fiery Joy.
And to pay loving reverence to our Rage & Anger.
We are so grateful to be connected with y’all for this one, please share widely to all your Wild Grievers💎
Grief Tending & Care for the People✨
Monday, June 1st
5pm PST / 6pm MT/ 8pm EST
Meeting ID: 871 0662 5925
https://lnkd.in/gKYf_zUv
Prep for circle:
If you would like to (not required) and are able to please set up a shrine or space for yourself as an embodiment practice. Gather a candle/light, water (any type) & vessel to pour into (cup/bowl) & any grief object or any item, song, reading that you would like to keep close. Maybe one that pays homage or gratitude to your Rage & Anger.
This workshop introduces social workers to the knowledge and skills needed to provide affirming, evidence-based support to transgender clients experiencing substance use challenges. Participants will explore the intersections of gender identity, minority stress, trauma, and substance use, with a focus on practical treatment strategies that enhance engagement and retention. Through guided discussion, attendees will learn how to apply gender-affirming, trauma-informed, and harm-reduction approaches in clinical practice. The session also highlights common barriers to care and offers concrete tools for creating safer, more inclusive treatment environments. In partnership with RIZE Massachusetts.
Speakers: Tanagra M. Melgarejo, MSW, and Joe Pereira, LICSW, CAS
Earn 1.5 FREE CEUs
Learning Objectives:
- Identify at least two factors that contribute to substance use risk among transgender clients.
- Describe at least one gender-affirming strategy to enhance engagement, safety, and effectiveness in substance use treatment.
- Recognize the principles in culturally responsive communication that reduce barriers to care and support positive treatment outcomes for transgender individuals.
Please join us on Thursday May 28th from 12pm to 1pm EST for our community conversation on kinship families, information and resources about children who have lost parents to substance-related causes and are being raised by other family members.
Kerry Bickford, of Grandparents Raising Grandchildren, will join us for a community conversation to discuss some of the aspects of being the caretaker of children whose parents died from substance-related causes. They will discuss the work they have been doing, the current landscape, and offer some possible resources. This offering provides information and offers an opportunity for questions from direct service providers of all types.
About our presenter:
Kerry is a founding member of the Commission on the Status of Grandparents Raising Grandchildren in MA, a grandparent peer-grief specialist for SADOD, She is a certified grief educator and has helped develop grief resources for grandparents raising grandchildren with the National Alliance on Children’s Grief. Kerry facilitates three grief support groups monthly for grieving grandparents/kin, and two for parents who have lost a loved one to a substance-related cause.
Synthetic Soup: What’s Really in the US Drug Supply?
The illicit drug supply landscape is rapidly changing. On May 7 at 3:00 PM ET, MacArthur Fellow Dr. Nabarun Dasgupta, PhD, from the University of North Carolina, will share findings from the analysis of over 20,000 street drug samples—revealing emerging synthetic substances, regional variations, and what current overdose trends tell us about the evolving drug environment. This FDA Centers of Excellence in Regulatory Science and Innovation (CERSI) sponsored lecture emphasizes data-driven insights with real-world narratives to connect the importance of scientific research in understanding the rapidly evolving drug environment.
Learn more: Synthetic Soup: Drug Supply and Overdose Trends – 05/07/2026 | FDA
Meeting link: Join from Zoom Workplace app – Zoom
The Sun Will Rise and SADOD is hosting a COMMUNITY HUB VIRTUAL INFO SESSION
Tuesday, June 2nd from 6:00-7:00 pm ET. Zoom link: https://bit.ly/4dhRtUY
Learn more about Mosaic’s Community Hub. This platform was born from a desire for a dynamic, online, knowledge-sharing platform to help people in the field find and post opportunities for funding, jobs, upcoming events, publications, and information about current and promising interventions, services, and programs. Membership in Mosaic’s Community Hub is free and available to individuals, organizations, municipalities, and state agencies across Massachusetts.
Harm Reduction In the Headlines: Media Engagement 101:
Hosted by Remedy Alliance for the People & The Action Lab at Northeastern University
Media attention can amplify harm reduction work — or distort it. Join us to unpack how programs get pulled into harmful media narratives, how misinformation spreads, and how to decide when to speak up or step back. Learn strategies to protect your program while staying grounded in your values.
🗓 May 7, 2026
🕐 1:00–2:30 pm ET / 12:00-1:30 pm CT / 10 am-11:30 am PT
This session is designed for harm reduction workers navigating today’s complex media landscape. We hope to make it an interactive experience for those that attend! A second webinar will follow with tangible media engagement skills, including mock interviews and case studies.
Speakers:
- Jim Duffy, Smoke Works
- Greg Scott, Depaul University
- Charlotte Lapsansky, The Action Lab
- Yarelix Estrada, Remedy Alliance FTP
👉 Register here: https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/-8DaEI6uTPezSwC7uTdEJw
Please feel free to share widely with colleagues and partners. The attached PDF has the registration link embedded.