A WIFE STEPS UP –
April 2024 – Kathryn Burgum now in long-term recovery for 22 years — told Carlson Zink and the luncheon crowd that she adopted her recovery platform soon after her husband was elected to his first gubernatorial term in 2016. She would make it her priority to support and develop initiatives specifically to help eliminate the shame and stigma of the chronic disease of addiction. “How many of you have been impacted in some way by the disease of addiction? Either through your family, friends, whatever — raise your hand.”
That was the question posed by North Dakota first lady Kathryn Burgum as she openly recounted her own struggles with alcohol addiction and recovery in front of 140 guests — and dozens more via livestream — during the recent 10th annual Women for Philanthropy luncheon in UND’s Gorecki Alumni Center.
