About

Hi, I'm Anthony

Founder of RISE TOGETHER. Creator of UNBROKEN. Speaker, photographer, and storyteller exploring how lived experience and human connection can change lives.

Why I Do This Work

For more than a decade, my work has been built around one idea: stories can change what happens next.

What began in 2013 with my own recovery story grew into RISE TOGETHER, a national effort using lived experience and connection to help young people navigate the impact of overdose, mental health, and life's hardest moments.

That work has now reached hundreds of thousands of young people and community members and contributed to peer-reviewed research involving more than 10,000 students.

After losing my 17-year-old son, Gavyn, to fentanyl in 2020, storytelling took on an even deeper meaning.

Today, through speaking, photography, RISE TOGETHER, and the UNBROKEN Project, I continue exploring how honest stories help people feel seen, remembered, and less alone.

Different mediums. Same belief.

Connection can change a life.

Read the Blog

Speaking & Coaching

Featured By & Trusted By

Anthony's work has been featured by Forbes, USA Today, NPR, PBS, Variety, Huffington Post, and national prevention and recovery organizations.

Creating Conversations That Matter

For more than a decade, Anthony has helped schools, organizations, and communities navigate difficult conversations through lived experience, storytelling, research, and human connection.

From school assemblies and national conferences to community exhibitions and leadership experiences, his work creates spaces where people can tell the truth, feel less alone, and take meaningful action.

His work focuses on:

Storytelling & Human Connection
Youth Prevention & Mental Health
Recovery, Grief & Resilience
Leadership Through Lived Experience

Areas of Impact

IMpact & experience

Co-Founder & Board Chair, RISE TOGETHER
Creator, The UNBROKEN Project
500,000+ youth and community members reached through RISE TOGETHER
Co-author of peer-reviewed research involving 10,438 students
Keynote speaker, Penn State College of Medicine Addiction Symposium
Presented for national prevention, recovery, education, and community organizations
Featured by Forbes, USA Today, NPR, PBS, Variety, and HuffPost

Contact Today

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Milwaukee — UNBROKen tonight 🖤

The portraits bring people in. The stories are what stay with us. Tonight, UNBROKEN comes to Milwaukee — creating space for honest conversations around overdose, loss, grief, recovery, and what it means to keep living while carrying someone with you. Come see the art. Read the testimonies. Connect. You don’t have to share your story. Come as you are. 📍 Milwaukee Makers Marketplace 2625 S. Greeley St., Suite 135 ⏰ 5–9 PM 🎟️ Free + open to the public Huge thanks to Mi

Anthony Alvarado

2 days ago1 min read

Lucky 13 is TONIGHT 🎤

13 years of RISE TOGETHER. One Big Night Tonight we celebrate 13 years of RISE TOGETHER. 13 years. 525,000+ lives reached. And a whole lot to celebrate. If you're anywhere near Appleton tonight, come hang with us at Gibson Community Music Hall. ONYX. Live music. Spoken word. Good people. Great cause. Doors at 5PM. Show at 6PM. Come celebrate with us! Can't make it tonight? You can still support RISE by checking out our Lucky 13 Online Auction — bidding closes ton

Anthony Alvarado

7 days ago1 min read

Two Nights. Two Reasons to Come Together.

RISE’s Lucky 13 + UNBROKEN x Milwaukee 13 Years of RISE. One Big Night. Next Saturday, we’re taking over Gibson Community Music Hall in downtown Appleton to celebrate 13 years of RISE TOGETHER—with ONYX, Keag + friends, spoken word from Keziah Love, music, storytelling, community and more. Every ticket helps keep RISE’s youth prevention work moving forward. Saturday, Sept. 12 | 5–9 PM | Downtown Appleton Five Days Later, UNBROKEN Comes to Milwaukee. The UNBROKEN Proje

Anthony Alvarado

Sep 41 min read

Nearly 70,000 lives. Every one has a story.

Seen. Remembered. Unbroken. Nearly 70,000 people died from drug overdose in the U.S. last year. The numbers are moving in the right direction. But every number is still a person. A family. A story. UNBROKEN began with my son, Gavyn. I lost him to fentanyl in 2020, two weeks after his 17th birthday. I didn't want his life—or the lives of so many others—to be reduced to another statistic. So we started sharing stories. Today, UNBROKEN is becoming a traveling collectio

Anthony Alvarado

Aug 301 min read

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Learn more about my work with Rise Together, coaching, consulting, podcast, or hire me to speak.