A free community event aimed at supporting Southwest Florida residents touched by substance use and mental health struggles returns to Cape Coral this weekend. The second annual Connection in the Park runs from 2 to 6 p.m. Saturday at Cultural Park, located at 528 Cultural Park Blvd., offering recovery resources, live music, food trucks and activities for the whole family.
The event is organized by the ARCHway Institute, a nonprofit dedicated to providing hope, education and resources for individuals and families impacted by substance use and co-occurring mental health disorders, according to the Cape Coral Breeze. The organization describes itself as a 501(c)(3) focused on increasing access to substance use and mental health recovery care, and it provides financial assistance grants, peer mentorship programs, educational initiatives and community events. ARCHway also works nationwide to eliminate barriers to treatment and provide ongoing recovery support, and it releases roughly $100,000 in small grants each year to recovery community organizations and recovery housing through private donations.
ARCHway Institute Event Coordinator Marybeth Hill said the gathering is meant to bring people together in a positive setting. She said the event brings community partners together to share resources and help people find support, and she added that community and substance-free gatherings can support recovery, per the same account.
Keynote Speaker and Live Music on the Bill
Connection in the Park will feature keynote speaker Annette Franks, M.Ed., LPC, a licensed professional counselor, corporate wellness coach and national motivational speaker with more than three decades of experience in addiction recovery education, mindfulness and holistic health. Franks will share part of her personal story and the importance of community in recovery, the Cape Coral Breeze reports.
The afternoon will also include a live musical performance by Dave Powers, who has won two Emmy Awards. Organizers say the event is designed to connect Southwest Florida residents with wellness resources, peer support networks and community services, and it aims to reduce stigma around substance use disorders and seeking help.
Food Trucks, Face Painting and a Resource Fair
Attendees can expect food and refreshments from local Southwest Florida food truck vendors throughout the event. The gathering also includes a community resource and vendor fair featuring wellness providers, recovery navigators, civic groups and local businesses, with roughly 20 vendors expected, including recovery housing organizations, treatment providers, nonprofits and the Army National Guard.
Connection in the Park welcomes children, who can take part in games and activities such as face painting. The event is free and open to the public, and attendees are encouraged to bring a lawn chair.
Part of a Broader Local Push on Recovery
This is not ARCHway's only recent footprint in Cape Coral. In July 2025, the Cape Coral Police Department announced a $12,000 grant to the ARCHway Institute to support recovery services in the community, according to the Cape Coral Police Department. The funding came through opioid settlement funds received by the city and was intended to help residents access treatment, recovery housing, peer support and counseling.
ARCHway has also raised money for recovery grants in the past; its 2021 Annual Dinner & Auction at the Club at Pelican Preserve in Fort Myers brought in close to $8,000, with proceeds supporting financial-assistance grants for people in recovery, per a statement on the organization's own site.
Other local groups have staged similar gatherings. Kimmie's Recovery Zone held its own Party in the Park at Collaboratory in September, running from 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. with family activities, live music, food, industry speakers and more than 20 information booths focused on mental health and addiction recovery, as detailed by the Cape Coral Breeze. That event's keynote speaker was Florida State Sen. Darryl Rouson, with remarks from Fort Myers Mayor Kevin B. Anderson.
The push for visibility around recovery comes against a backdrop of persistent overdose numbers across the region. The Cape Coral Breeze reported that Florida recorded 2,298 opioid overdose deaths and 3,129 total drug overdose deaths between January and June 2024, along with 31,016 non-fatal overdose emergency department visits statewide that year. In Lee County specifically, fatal overdoses peaked at 296 in 2020 before declining slightly to 295 in 2021 and 293 in 2022, according to the News-Press, which characterized the trend as having appeared to plateau even as death rates remain near historical peaks.
