Start 2021 SOBER –
Dec. 23, 2020 – Last year, Garcia launched the Dallas Sober New Year’s Eve party, but COVID-19 forced her to reimagine the concept as an online resource available to anyone seeking help — even on Christmas Day and New Year’s Eve.
“The in-person sober NYE party was inspired by my own depression. I had always been a social butterfly and loved to host events. The problem: My events always included heavy drinking. For the first entire year of my recovery, I felt I was not ready to be in a social setting and be able to remain sober,” she says. “It was around Halloween of 2019 that I realized how sad I was that I was no longer able to host events.”
Then a lightbulb went off.
“I thought to myself, ‘Is this what sobriety is going to be like for the rest of my life?’ That’s when I decided to try out the idea of hosting a sober NYE party, so I could experience a party atmosphere without the temptation,” Garcia recalls. “I figured that if I needed something like this, others would, too. I was right. We packed the house and danced the night away.”
As 2020 progressed, she knew rather quickly that an in-person event wouldn’t be possible, yet the demand remained.
“I had many people reach out to me asking if I would have a sober NYE party this year. I was puzzled and thought, ‘Why are they even asking? Don’t they know there’s a pandemic? Of course, we can’t have the party this year!’” she recalls. “That’s when I thought to myself how important it is to figure out a way to provide a safe space for connection, community and conversation. So instead of having a party this year, I brought together 100 people in recovery who are willing to reach out to anyone needing someone to talk to.”
