P.A.A.R.I.

P.A.A.R.I. Receives $930,000 Grant from South Shore Health

⋅ Client News, Non-Profit News, Police News ⋅ , , , , , , , , , , , ⋅ 0 Comments

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Wednesday, May 15, 2019

Media Contact: John Guilfoil
Phone: 617-993-0003
Email: [email protected]

P.A.A.R.I. Receives $930,000 Grant from South Shore Health

Funding will Support Access to Behavioral Health Services in Plymouth County

PLYMOUTH — Police Assisted Addiction and Recovery Initiative (P.A.A.R.I.) Executive Director Allie Hunter is pleased to announce that P.A.A.R.I. has been awarded a $930,000 Integrative Behavioral Health grant by South Shore Health.

South Shore Health awarded $2.4 million to nonprofit groups this spring to support behavioral healthcare in Plymouth and Norfolk counties. P.A.A.R.I. was one of two nonprofit groups selected to receive a five-year grant for $930,000 this cycle.

The grant will support a new partnership between P.A.A.R.I. and Plymouth County Outreach (PCO), a collaborative of 28 police departments throughout the region. Over the next five years, P.A.A.R.I. will work with PCO to implement a “hub model” throughout the county to expand the behavioral health services available to the community, and coordinate outreach visits for individuals identified as being at acutely elevated risk due to substance use and/or mental health issues.

“This first-of-its-kind grant program through South Shore Health reflects our organization’s deep commitment to promoting good health within the community and by removing barriers to accessing behavioral healthcare for the most vulnerable among us,” said Gene E. Green, president and CEO of South Shore Health. “Congratulations to P.A.A.R.I. for being named a grantee. We are excited to see the impact this initiative will have in our communities.”

“P.A.A.R.I. has had many successful partnerships with PCO, and we are thrilled to embark on this latest initiative to support our local law enforcement partners to address behavioral health needs in Plymouth County,” Hunter said. “We are incredibly thankful that South Shore Health has chosen to support our plan to improve access to behavioral health services on the South Shore.”

“Behavioral health issues are a huge concern, and not just in Plymouth county– these issues are affecting communities everywhere,” said Plymouth Police Chief Michael Botieri, a member of the P.A.A.R.I. Law Enforcement Council. “We’re fortunate that this grant has been awarded to support behavioral health programming locally to help those who are struggling.”

The “hub model” aims to assist those struggling before they reach a crisis point, and to connect the community to a variety of much needed behavioral health services.

“We’ve seen great success with the hub model in communities like Chelsea, Lawrence and Boston, and are looking forward to putting in place a system that will connect those in need to additional services and support,” Hunter said. “This grant will allow us to address a wide umbrella of behavioral health issues in addition to substance use, including mental health concerns.”

“This is monumental as it will allow for PCO to spearhead an innovative Public Health 3.0 initiative –a first in the U.S.,” said Dr. Nate Horwitz-Willis, director of public health for the town of Plymouth. “This grant will help us address complex substance use challenges seen across our law enforcement, healthcare, and public health communities. We collaboratively look forward to addressing these challenges with best practices and scholarly evidence from all three fields that use primary, secondary, and tertiary equitable prevention approaches with a dynamic team of experts and leaders.”

“The time has come where we need to closer examine the crossover between drug addiction and mental health,” said Scituate Police Chief Michael Stewart. “We are all concerned with the rise in mental health cases.”

The grant will fund the hiring of a full time P.A.A.R.I. hub coordinator who will be based in Plymouth County for the next five years, and will oversee the program.

“Plymouth County Outreach is so fortunate and appreciative to partner with P.A.A.R.I. on expanding our county collaboration, bringing an Integrated Behavioral Health approach to our existing model,” said East Bridgewater Police Chief Scott Allen, a member of the P.A.A.R.I. Law Enforcement Council. “We can’t address substance use and mental health disorders in separate silos.”

About P.A.A.R.I.

The Police Assisted Addiction & Recovery Initiative (P.A.A.R.I.) is a nonprofit organization with a mission to help law enforcement agencies nationwide create non-arrest pathways to treatment and recovery. Founded alongside the groundbreaking Gloucester Police Department Angel Initiative in June 2015, P.A.A.R.I. has been a driving force behind this rapidly expanding community policing movement. We provide technical assistance, coaching, grants, and other capacity-building resources to more than 465 police departments in 33 states.

We currently work with more than 120 law enforcement agencies in Massachusetts alone. P.A.A.R.I. and our law enforcement partners are working towards a collective vision where non-arrest diversion programs become a standard policing practice across the country, thereby reducing overdose deaths, expanding access to treatment, improving public safety, reducing crime, diverting people away from the criminal justice system, and increasing trust between law enforcement and their communities. Our programs and partners have saved thousands of lives, changed police culture, and reshaped the national conversation about the opioid epidemic. Learn more at www.paariusa.org.

 

###

P.A.A.R.I. Announces New Partnership With Morris County Sheriff’s Hope One Program

⋅ Non-Profit News ⋅ , , , , , ⋅ 0 Comments

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Wednesday, April 3, 2019

Media Contact: John Guilfoil
Phone: 617-993-0003
Email: [email protected]

 

P.A.A.R.I. Announces New Partnership With Morris County Sheriff’s Hope One Program

PARSIPPANY, N.J. — Executive Director Allie Hunter is pleased to announce that the Police Assisted Addiction and Recovery Initiative (P.A.A.R.I.) has partnered with law enforcement agencies in Morris County, New Jersey.

The new partnership brings together P.A.A.R.I., The Morris County Sheriff’s and Prosecutor’s Offices and the Sheriff’s Hope One program. It will ultimately help expand services to those seeking recovery resources in Morris County. Working together, P.A.A.R.I. and Hope One will be positioned to connect individuals proactively seeking treatment for life-threatening substance use disorders with certified peer recovery specialists.

The Morris County Sheriff’s Office is the first law enforcement agency in Morris County to partner with P.A.A.R.I. It is also the only sheriff’s office in New Jersey to adopt P.A.A.R.I.’s model, which relies on close collaboration among police and nonprofit agencies to help ease the barriers to recovery for those seeking help overcoming their battle with opioids.

“We are delighted to be present as the Morris County Sheriff’s Office joins P.A.A.R.I. and launches the Hope One-P.A.A.R.I Program. They are joining a growing movement of nearly 500 law enforcement agencies nationwide that are using non-arrest strategies to address the mounting opioid epidemic,” said Hunter, who attended an event today formally announcing the partnership. “As we have seen with other P.A.A.R.I. initiatives across the country, this program will create a pathways to treatment and recovery, which will ultimately prevent overdose deaths and improve community safety and wellbeing. We are grateful to all the partners involved for the dedication and leadership, and we are thrilled to have the Morris County Sheriff’s Office as partners in this important effort.”

The Hope One-P.A.A.R.I. partnership was made possible through a $332,658 grant from the U.S. Department of Justice that was awarded to the Morris County Sheriff’s Office to expand its Hope One mobile substance recovery and resource vehicle program.

Under the initiative, individuals can come to a police station without fear of arrest or prosecution and they will be assisted into a recovery program. Separately, police officers can use their discretion in approaching individuals they encounter on the street to determine whether they are open to meeting with a peer recovery specialist.

“With opioid and heroin addiction consuming the lives of family members, neighbors, classmates and friends, and often leading them to break the law to finance their addictions, we all have a stake as human beings to try to stop the scourge,” Morris County Sheriff James M. Gannon said. “Police officers who are familiar with vulnerable populations in their communities are well-suited to start the process of helping people connect with treatment services in a compassionate, non-judgmental style.”

On April 3, about 50 police chiefs and officers from 20 municipal police departments around Morris County participated in four hours of instruction and training for the new P.A.A.R.I. partnership, at Morris County’s Public Safety Training Academy in Parsippany, N.J.. Police chiefs and superior officers from the Butler, Mount Olive, Montville, Dover and Morristown Police Departments are part of an advisory group that met in February to plan the P.A.A.R.I. launch.

“The PAARI program helps local law enforcement tremendously because it delivers certified peer recovery specialists out to meet directly with the person who is suffering from addiction, either on the street or right in our municipal police stations. As a result, we can offer real help,” said Butler Police Chief Ciro Chimento.

About P.A.A.R.I.

The Police Assisted Addiction & Recovery Initiative (P.A.A.R.I.) is a nonprofit organization with a mission to help law enforcement agencies nationwide create non-arrest pathways to treatment and recovery. Founded alongside the groundbreaking Gloucester Police Department Angel Initiative in June 2015, P.A.A.R.I. has been a driving force behind this rapidly expanding community policing movement. We provide technical assistance, coaching, grants, and other capacity-building resources to more than 440 police departments in 32 states.

We currently work with more than 100 law enforcement agencies in Massachusetts alone. P.A.A.R.I. and our law enforcement partners are working towards a collective vision where non-arrest diversion programs become a standard policing practice across the country, thereby reducing overdose deaths, expanding access to treatment, improving public safety, reducing crime, diverting people away from the criminal justice system, and increasing trust between law enforcement and their communities.

Our programs and partners have saved thousands of lives, changed police culture and reshaped the national conversation about the opioid epidemic. Learn more at www.paariusa.org.

 

###

 

P.A.A.R.I Announces New Partnership With Brockton Police Department’s Champion Plan

⋅ Client News, Police News ⋅ , , , ⋅ 0 Comments

PAARI_Logo_PUB_052815-06

P.A.A.R.I.
John Rosenthal, Co-founder & Chairman
253 Amory Street
Boston, MA 02130

For Immediate Release

Friday, March 1, 2019

Media Contact: John Guilfoil
Phone: 617-993-0003
Email: [email protected]

P.A.A.R.I Announces New Partnership With Brockton Police Department’s Champion Plan

BOSTON — Executive Director Allie Hunter McDade is very pleased to announce that the Office of Mayor Bill Carpenter, in partnership with the Brockton Police Department, Gandara Center, Brewster Ambulance and the Brockton Area Prevention Collaborative, is marking the third anniversary of its groundbreaking Champion Plan Program by partnering with the Police Assisted Addiction and Recovery Initiative (P.A.A.R.I).

In three years since its launch, the city’s Champion Plan has come into contact with more than 700 individuals seeking assistance in overcoming their personal struggles with substance use disorders. Through those interactions, Brockton Police and the Champion Plan have secured over 1,100 placements into treatment.

“The Champion Plan has had some remarkable accomplishments in its first three years, and we’re eager to partner with the Champion Plan and Brockton Police to continue building upon that foundation,” Hunter McDade said. “Their work has made a lasting impact on hundreds of lives, and I have no doubt that through this new partnership we’ll be able to replicate this successful model within other police departments across the commonwealth and the country.”

Brockton Police and P.A.A.R.I’s partnership was made official today at a ceremony celebrating the Champion Plan’s third anniversary. Mayor Bill Carpenter, Chief John Crowley, Hunter McDade and Jonathan Fasano, a former client of the Champion Plan, as well as all of the Champion Plan’s hardworking staff were in attendance to mark the occasion.

“We are looking forward to sharing our Champion Plan experiences with other members as we support PAARI’s mission to expand access to treatment through true community policing”, said Mayor Bill Carpenter.

Brockton is a significant partner in Plymouth County Outreach, which unites all of the county’s police departments, as well as key stakeholders from the treatment and healthcare communities, to assist those struggling with substance use disorders and provide them support and resources.

For the last two years, PCO has been able to draw upon the efforts of Recovery Coaches funded by the groundbreaking P.A.A.R.I AmeriCorps grant. Now, with the awarding of a federal Comprehensive Opioid Abuse Site-based Program grant, PCO, P.A.A.R.I and the city of Brockton will be able to even further strengthen their outreach and recovery services.

About P.A.A.R.I

The Police Assisted Addiction & Recovery Initiative (P.A.A.R.I) is a nonprofit organization with a mission to help law enforcement agencies nationwide create non-arrest pathways to treatment and recovery. Founded alongside the groundbreaking Gloucester Police Department Angel Initiative in June 2015, P.A.A.R.I has been a driving force behind this rapidly expanding community policing movement. We provide technical assistance, coaching, grants, and other capacity-building resources to more than 440 police departments in 32 states.

We currently work with more than 100 law enforcement agencies in Massachusetts alone. P.A.A.R.I and our law enforcement partners are working towards a collective vision where non-arrest diversion programs become a standard policing practice across the country, thereby reducing overdose deaths, expanding access to treatment, improving public safety, reducing crime, diverting people away from the criminal justice system, and increasing trust between law enforcement and their communities.

Our programs and partners have saved thousands of lives, changed police culture and reshaped the national conversation about the opioid epidemic. Learn more at www.paariusa.org.

 

###

 

*MEDIA ADVISORY* P.A.A.R.I. Leaders to Visit White House to Discuss the Role of Law Enforcement in Addressing the Drug Crisis with Vice President Mike Pence

⋅ Client News, Police News ⋅ , , , , ⋅ 0 Comments

PAARI_Logo_PUB_052815-06

P.A.A.R.I.
John Rosenthal, Co-founder & Chairman
253 Amory Street
Boston, MA 02130

For Immediate Release

Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2019

Media Contact: John Guilfoil
Phone: 617-993-0003
Email: [email protected]

*MEDIA ADVISORY*

P.A.A.R.I. Leaders to Visit White House to Discuss the Role of Law Enforcement in Addressing the Drug Crisis with Vice President Mike Pence

BOSTON — Executive Director Allie Hunter McDade is very pleased to announce that a delegation of leaders from the Police Assisted Addiction and Recovery Initiative will travel to Washington tomorrow for a meeting with Vice President Mike Pence at the White House.

While in Washington, P.A.A.R.I. will discuss the role of law enforcement in battling the nationwide opioid crisis and assisting those suffering from substance use disorders.

Members of the P.A.A.R.I. delegation are available for media interviews after the meeting. Reporters, networks, affiliates, and broadcast companies are asked to coordinate with their Washington bureaus.

Requests for interviews should be directed to John Guilfoil Public Relations LLC at 617-993-0003 or [email protected] Any coverage of the event itself should be coordinated with the White House Press Office.

WHEN:

TOMORROW — Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019 at 11:30 a.m.

WHERE: 

The White House, Washington

WHO: 

  • Allie Hunter McDade, P.A.A.R.I. Executive Director
  • Sergeant Peter Messina, Boston Police Department
  • Officer Joshua DeLisle, Boston Police Department
  • Lieutenant David Murphy, Boston Police Department
  • Chief Joseph Solomon, Methuen Police Department
  • Lieutenant Steven Thomas, Anne Arundel County, Maryland Police Department
  • Christopher DeGlopper, Greenfield, Wisconsin Police Department

WHAT: 

P.A.A.R.I. has been invited by the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) to participate in an event at the White House.

Vice President Mike Pence will host a meeting with law enforcement leaders to discuss the nation’s drug epidemic and thank them for their service and leadership in this area.

The meeting will be a gathering of several hundred law enforcement leaders from around the country. Hunter McDade will be joined by approximately a dozen P.A.A.R.I. law enforcement leaders from Boston and Methuen, Massachusetts as well as Anne Arundel County, Maryland and Greenfield Wisconsin.

About P.A.A.R.I

The Police Assisted Addiction & Recovery Initiative (P.A.A.R.I) is a nonprofit organization with a mission to help law enforcement agencies nationwide create non-arrest pathways to treatment and recovery. Founded alongside the groundbreaking Gloucester Police Department Angel Initiative in June 2015, P.A.A.R.I has been a driving force behind this rapidly expanding community policing movement. We provide technical assistance, coaching, grants, and other capacity-building resources to more than 440 police departments in 32 states. We currently work with more than 100 law enforcement agencies in Massachusetts alone. P.A.A.R.I and our law enforcement partners are working towards a collective vision where non-arrest diversion programs become a standard policing practice across the country, thereby reducing overdose deaths, expanding access to treatment, improving public safety, reducing crime, diverting people away from the criminal justice system, and increasing trust between law enforcement and their communities. Our programs and partners have saved thousands of lives, changed police culture, and reshaped the national conversation about the opioid epidemic. Learn more at www.paariusa.org.

 

###

 

1 2 3 4 5 >»