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How This Kansas City Artist Conquered His Addiction

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Kansas City based oil painter and illustrator Wes Benson says he paints what he finds beautiful.

After a long battle, Kansas City artist Wes Benson conquered his addiction to opioids. He tells his story hoping it will help others do the same.

Today, he runs a secular AA group called “Freethinkers,” aimed at helping people empower themselves to recover from addiction. He also sponsors several addicts and cautions them not to backslide during a pandemic, when it’s especially easy to do so.

Wes Benson, artist and addiction survivor

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Up To Date Talk Show Visual Arts Podcast visual art Kansas City Missouri (KCMO)addiction Opioids

Steve Kraske

Steve Kraske is the host of KCUR's Up To Date. Follow him on Twitter @stevekraske.

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Chris Young

Chris Young is an Assistant Producer for KCUR’s Up To Date. Contact him at chrisy@kcur.org.

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Mackenzie Martin

Mackenzie Martin is a producer for KCUR's Up To Date, Real Humans By Gina Kaufmann, and A People's History of Kansas City. Reach out to her at mackenzie@kcur.org or on Twitter @_macmartin.

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