For Immediate Release

Monday, June 27, 2016

Contact: John Guilfoil (P.A.A.R.I.)
Phone: 617-993-0003
Email: john@jgpr.net

*Media Advisory* P.A.A.R.I. Hosts One Year Anniversary Celebration

White House Office of National Drug Control Policy Chief of Staff to Attend

WHDH’s Cheryl Fiandaca to Emcee the Event

GLOUCESTER — Police Chief Leonard Campanello and John Rosenthal, co-founders of the Police Assisted Addiction and Recovery Initiative (P.A.A.R.I.), are pleased to announce that a celebration of the One Year Anniversary of P.A.A.R.I. and the Gloucester ANGEL Initiative will take place this week.

White House Office of National Drug Control Policy Chief of Staff Regina Labelle, State Senator Bruce Tarr, State Representative Ann Margaret Ferrante, and Gloucester Mayor Sefatia Romeo Theken and many other officials are scheduled to attend.

“We are thrilled to mark this one year milestone in Gloucester, where the program initially began,” Chief Campanello said. “P.A.A.R.I. has now established partnerships in 25 states in one year, which is an incredible feat worth celebrating.”

WHEN:

Thursday, June 30 at 6 p.m.

WHERE:

Gloucester House, 63 Rogers St.

WHO:

• P.A.A.R.I. Co-founder and Gloucester Police Chief Leonard Campanello
• P.A.A.R.I. Co-founder and Chairman John Rosenthal
• Gloucester Mayor Sefatia Romeo Theken
• State Senator Bruce Tarr
• State Representative Ann Margaret Ferrante
• WHDH Investigative Reporter Cheryl Fiandaca
• Regina Labelle, Chief of Staff White House Office of National Drug Control Policy
• Joanne Peterson, Founder of Learn 2 Cope
• John Morris, Owner of Beauport Ambulance
• Nicole Walmsley, Ohio Advocate
• Chuck Faris, Founder of Spectrum Health Systems, Inc.
• Donna Pellegrino, Vice President of Spectrum Health Systems, Inc.
• Chief of Police Robbie Moulton, Scarborough, Maine
• Police Officer John Gill, Scarborough, Maine
• Steve Cotreau, Clinical Coordinator, Scarborough, Maine
• Chief of Police Danny Langloss, Dixon, Ill.
• Lt. David Quinn, Gloucester Police Department

WHAT:

The celebration will include appetizers and an awards ceremony, where P.A.A.R.I. founders will hand out the first annual P.A.A.R.I. Angel Leadership Awards to those who have championed the organization’s success over the past year.

P.A.A.R.I. will also be awarding three scholarships to participants of the Angel Program as part of the Stephenie O. Jesi Memorial Scholarship.

WHDH’s Cheryl Fiandaca will emcee the event. 

“P.A.A.R.I.’s success thus far is entirely due to our courageous program participants and police department partners across Massachusetts and throughout the Country,” Rosenthal said. “We’ve already helped change the conversation, reduce stigma and place over 2,000 people into treatment. We have a lot to celebrate and much more to do to help those suffering from the horrific, chronic disease of addiction.”

This event is open the public, space is limited and a suggested tax deductible donation of $40 is requested. All proceeds will go to P.A.A.R.I., which will purchase two doses of the life-saving overdose blocking drug Narcan.

P.A.A.R.I. was started to support local police departments as they work with those struggling with the disease of addiction. Rather than arrest our way out of the problem of drug addiction, P.A.A.R.I. committed police departments:

• Encourage opioid drug users to seek recovery
• Help distribute life saving opioid blocking drugs to prevent and treat overdoses
• Connect people suffering with opioid addiction with treatment programs and facilities
• Provide resources to other police departments and communities that want to do more to fight the opioid addiction epidemic

P.A.A.R.I. was created by Gloucester Police Chief Leonard Campanello and John Rosenthal to bridge the gap between police departments and those struggling with the disease of addiction. Since its founding, police departments in 24 states have joined as partners with the initiative.

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