Rocky Atkinson, father of contemporary artist Patrick Atkinson, retired to the coast of North Carolina after a successful 40 year career as an insurance executive in Charlotte, NC. He cofounded two benefit consulting firms that were acquired, one by a major insurance company and the other by an international brokerage conglomerate. Upon the death of his son in 2012, he has devoted much time to working with men suffering from the disease of addiction and is currently Chairman of the Board of a Christ based recovery facility in Brunswick County, NC. He has written on the horrors of addiction for area newspapers and has spoken to churches and civic clubs about the opioid epidemic. The Road to Recovery was inspired by the life and art of his son and most of the writings reflect what Patrick might have said had he lived and the others come from 5 years in the trenches with those suffering from the disease of addiction.
