2025 National Rural Institute on Alcohol, Drugs, and Addictions

Keynote Announcement: Fabulous Healing: A Journey of Recovery Through the Art of Drag

The National Rural Institute on Alcohol, Drugs and Addictions conference, which is being held at The University of Wisconsin-Stout in Menomonie, Wisconsin from June 8-12 is pleased to announce the keynote speaker, Russ King. Russ will be speaking on Thursday June 12, 2025. We are thrilled with this announcement as we consider this as a “two-in-one speaker”, meaning both Russ King and their alter ego, Miss Richfield 1981 will be present. In this presentation, Russ will talk about his career in drag leading him into a life of recovery.

Russ will share both the joys of a life on stage, along with the challenges that a national drag career demands, such as late-night hours, traveling alone, and working in settings that are typically friendly to alcohol and other drugs. However, along with the struggles of substance abuse, Russ also will speak to the surprisingly supportive drag community that provided him with a network of friends who supported and encouraged his sobriety.

Variety Show Announcement: Healing and Heeling. I’m Heal in Heels on June 11, 2025

The National Rural Institute on Alcohol, Drugs and Addictions Conference, which is being held at The University of Wisconsin-Stout in Menomonie, Wisconsin from June 8-12 is pleased to announce the Variety Show as part of its conference lineup. Russ King, who is also our featured keynote on June 12, 2025, created Miss Richfield 1981 while working in the AIDS community in the mid-1990’s. The character is a beauty pageant winner from his hometown of Richfield, a first-ring suburb of Minneapolis, Minnesota., as well as an homage to his mother.

Since its creation, Miss Richfield has become a national act, with more than 100 shows each year in theaters and nightclubs across the country. Her schedule annually includes a summer residence at the Post Office Cabaret in Provincetown, Massachusetts, and frequent tours with Atlantis Events cruise ships and resorts. Miss Richfield’s live performances have received critical acclaim with The New York Post declaring Miss R as “the must-see act in Provincetown” and The Chicago Sun-Times describing her as “Garrison Keillor meets Mary Tyler Moore.” Miss R’s wide appeal includes riotous appearances on “The Tonight Show” and the “Today” show on NBC and “Cake Boss” on TLC, along with being a national spokesperson for Orbitz and the Cities of Philadelphia and Palm Springs. Russ hopes this presentation will celebrate the transformative power of drag, as well as the solace and strength sobriety adds to his work on and off the stage.

About The Rural 2025

The National Rural Institute on Alcohol, Drugs and Addictions (also known as The Rural) is hosted by NRADAN, Inc., and will take place June 8–12, 2025, at the University of Wisconsin–Stout in Menomonie, WI. It will be a hybrid event, with in-person and virtual attendance options, and offers up to 24 CEUs for professionals in addiction services, plus more through recorded sessions.