Police Assisted Addiction and Recovery Initiative

Central Middlesex Police Partnership Continues Working with P.A.A.R.I to Build Capacity of Opioid Program

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For Immediate Release

Wednesday, Aug. 29, 2018

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

Central Middlesex Police Partnership Continues Working with P.A.A.R.I to Build Capacity of Opioid Program

Police Departments Receive Second AmeriCorps Grant to Bring on Part-Time Recovery Coach

MIDDLESEX COUNTY —  The Police Chiefs of Acton, Bedford, Concord, Carlisle, Lincoln, Lexington, Stow, Maynard and Hanscom Air Force Base, which make up the Central Middlesex Police Partnership (CMPP), are pleased to announce that their police departments have received their second AmeriCorps grant from the Police Assisted Addiction and Recovery Initiative (P.A.A.R.I) to bring on a part-time recovery coach to increase the group’s addiction and recovery efforts.

This groundbreaking statewide program, which launched last year, places 25 AmeriCorps members in host police department sites across Massachusetts. They then work to build the capacity of law enforcement programs and assist those suffering from substance use disorders by connecting them to treatment and recovery services that divert them from the criminal justice system.

CMPP communities are among the 73 police departments selected to receive an AmeriCorps grant from P.A.A.R.I.

“We’re excited to continue to bolster our efforts to support those with substance use disorders and their loved ones,” said CMPP’s Jail Diversion Coordinator Alia Toran-Burrell. “Last year’s recovery coach was a great asset in providing life saving resources to our community members.”

To make the AmeriCorps program possible, P.A.A.R.I received a three-year grant from the Massachusetts Service Alliance and the Corporation for National and Community Service to assist with local police-led addiction and recovery programs in light of the growing opioid epidemic.

“P.A.A.R.I’s mission is to provide resources to help law enforcement agencies combat the opioid epidemic and this innovative program will add significant capacity to our law enforcement partners and utilize service as a solution to address critical community needs,” said P.A.A.R.I Executive Director Allie Hunter McDade. “We are thrilled that CMPP has signed on as a partner for the second year of the groundbreaking program.”

P.A.A.R.I and CMPP are currently seeking applications for the part-time recovery coach to be based in the Bedford area. The recovery coach will receive a twice monthly living allowance of $339, 60 hours of training and 35 hours of supervision toward the CARC Recovery Coach Certification and valuable experience working in the field. Recovery Coaches who successfully complete a term of service also receive a Segal AmeriCorps Education Award of up to $2,907.50, which may be used to pay educational costs at post-secondary educational institutions or to pay student loans.

“We’ve seen firsthand the difference working with a recovery coach can have on our communities,” Concord Police Chief Joseph O’Connor said. “We’re thankful to be able to be a part of P.A.A.R.I’s AmeriCorps program for another year so that we can expand upon the work we’ve been doing on the local level.”

Interested applicants can find more information and application instructions here.

About AmeriCorps:
AmeriCorps is a civil society program that engages adults in public service work with a goal of helping others and meeting critical needs in the community. Members commit to full-time or part-time positions offered by a network of nonprofit community organizations and public agencies to fulfill assignments in the fields of education, public safety, healthcare, and environmental protection. There are more than 75,000 Americans in service each year.

About P.A.A.R.I:
The Police Assisted Addiction & Recovery Initiative (P.A.A.R.I) is a 501c3 nonprofit with a mission to help law enforcement agencies establish pre-arrest programs that create immediate and stigma-free entry points to treatment and recovery programs. P.A.A.R.I works across sectors to provide training, coaching, and support; program models, policies and procedures, and templates; seed grants; connections to over 300 vetted treatment centers; a network of like-minded law enforcement agencies; a unified voice with media and legislators; and capacity building through AmeriCorps. P.A.A.R.I is free to join and open to any law enforcement agency that believes in treatment over arrest and views addiction as a disease not a crime. Since June 2015, P.A.A.R.I has helped launch more than 400 law enforcement programs in 32 states, distributed 10,000 4mg doses of life-saving nasal naloxone, and helped over 18,000 people into treatment.

 

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Five P.A.A.R.I. Recovery Coaches Join Boston Police Department through AmeriCorps Program

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P.A.A.R.I.
John Rosenthal, Co-founder & Chairman
Frederick Ryan, Co-Chairman
186 Main Street
Gloucester, MA 01930

For Immediate Release

Monday, June 11, 2018

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

Five P.A.A.R.I. Recovery Coaches Join Boston Police Department through AmeriCorps Program

GLOUCESTER — Executive Director Allie Hunter McDade is pleased to announce that five Police Assisted Addiction and Recovery Initiative (P.A.A.R.I.) recovery coaches have been sworn in as AmeriCorps members to contribute to the Boston Police Department’s addiction and recovery efforts.

Boston Mayor Martin J. Walsh held an official swearing in of P.A.A.R.I.’s Anita Cunha, Steve Jutras, Tyshaun Perryman, Ursel Hughes and Cheryl Molloy-Emerson as part of the 86th annual meeting of the United States Conference of Mayors on Sunday, June 10. The ceremony marked Mayor Walsh’s first time swearing in a group of AmeriCorps members.

“I’m grateful for the P.A.A.R.I. recovery coaches, who will work closely with our police officers, to fight the opioid epidemic by enhancing direct outreach and getting more people into treatment and on the road to recovery,” Mayor Walsh said. “All of us have a role to play in addressing the opioid epidemic, and as our first responders are on the front lines of answering the call for help, it’s our responsibility to ensure they are equipped with the tools and resources to best support those in need of care. This partnership with P.A.A.R.I. and AmeriCorps will strengthen our work as we continue to implement solutions that will make a real difference.”

During the meeting, where mayors from around the country were in attendance, the P.A.A.R.I.-AmeriCorps program was highlighted as a best practice. The program places members into service at host police department sites across Massachusetts to assist with municipal police-led addiction and recovery programs in direct response to the growing opioid epidemic.

“The opioid epidemic is the most pressing public health and public safety issue affecting our communities, with an estimated 174 fatal overdoses every single day,” Hunter McDade said during the U.S. Conference of Mayors. “So both at the local and federal level, there is an emphasis on leveraging national service programs, such as AmeriCorps, to address it.”

P.A.A.R.I. currently has a team of 22 members who are serving 53 communities across Massachusetts where they help build the capacity of law enforcement programs, prevent overdose deaths, and provide vital resources to community members with substance use disorders and their loved ones. Since October 2017, the team of P.A.A.R.I-AmeriCorps members have provided support to 3,057 unique individuals affected by a substance use disorder.

P.A.A.R.I. Co-founder John Rosenthal, who attended the ceremony and meeting, stressed the importance of communities implementing a pre-arrest program to assist those struggling with addiction while also working with volunteer organizations like AmeriCorps to provide related services to those in need.

“Thank you Mayor Marty Walsh for making the opioid epidemic a priority and for demonstrating your commitment by highlighting our partnership today,” Rosenthal said Sunday.

With the Boston Police Department, P.A.A.R.I.’s five recovery coaches will:

  • Assist individuals struggling with substance use disorders as they make referrals to treatment, navigate and remove barriers to recovery support services, and provide hope, optimism and encouragement.
  • Connect community members with substance use disorders, or those who have loved ones struggling with addiction, to recovery services.
  • Work across city agencies — like the Mayor’s Office of Recovery Services, Boston public libraries and the Boston Public Health Commission — as well as treatment providers, hospitals, neighborhood associations and organizations providing related services to assist those affected by opioid addiction.
  • Travel to neighborhoods where residents have less access to recovery services. All of the recovery coaches are personally in recovery and have direct experience navigating local treatment and recovery supports.

“We are so proud to partner with P.A.A.R.I. on this innovative, groundbreaking AmeriCorps program,” said Emily Haber, CEO of the Massachusetts Service Alliance, which provides funding to the project. “P.A.A.R.I.-AmeriCorps is a strong model for engaging the power of national service to address the devastating opioid crisis in Massachusetts and across the nation.”

The five P.A.A.R.I AmeriCorps members join more than 1,200 AmeriCorps and Senior Corps members combating the opioid epidemic in more than 150 communities across 45 states. This is thanks to support from the Corporation for National and Community Service, the federal agency that oversees these national service programs.

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*Media Advisory* Governor Baker to Give Opening Remarks at Inaugural P.A.A.R.I. National Law Enforcement Summit

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P.A.A.R.I.
John Rosenthal, Co-founder & Chairman
186 Main Street
Gloucester, MA 01930

For Immediate Release

Thursday, Nov. 30, 2017

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

*Media Advisory*

Governor Baker to Give Opening Remarks at Inaugural P.A.A.R.I. National Law Enforcement Summit 

More than 200 Leaders from Around the Country to Attend

GLOUCESTER — The Police Assisted Addiction and Recovery Initiative (P.A.A.R.I.) is pleased to welcome law enforcement leaders from throughout the nation next week at its first National Law Enforcement Summit.

The event, which is the first of its kind, will bring more than 200 leaders from 27 states and the District of Columbia to Boston. It is completely open to press, and a schedule of speaking programs is attached below.

WHO: 

  • Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker
  • Sandro Galea, Dean, Boston University School of Public Health
  • John Rosenthal, P.A.A.R.I. Co-Founder and Co-Chairman
  • Frederick Ryan, P.A.A.R.I. Co-Chairman, Police Council Chairman and Arlington Police Chief
  • Allie Hunter McDade, P.A.A.R.I. Executive Director
  • P.A.A.R.I. National Police Council Members
  • More than 200 law enforcement leaders

WHEN:

  • Tuesday, Dec. 5, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
  • Wednesday, Dec. 6 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

 

WHERE:

Boston University School of Medicine

72 East Concord St. (14th floor), Boston

 

WHAT:

The P.A.A.R.I. National Law Enforcement Summit is a groundbreaking event that will connect law enforcement leaders from around the country who have changed their approach to the opioid epidemic in their communities and taken the lead in preventing overdose deaths and providing access to addiction treatment and recovery.

Over 200 police leaders from agencies of all sizes will be in attendance at the summit, which will include a keynote address from Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker.

The summit will empower law enforcement agencies to outline their successes and challenges in combating the nationwide opioid epidemic, and will serve as a platform for the sharing of ideas on how to build upon, or launch, a pre-arrest addiction and recovery referral program in order to provide those struggling with addiction with the help they need.

MEDIA LOGISTICS:

There will be opportunities for television, radio and print/online media interviews, and staff will be on-site to assist media. Law enforcement leaders from the following states will be in attendance and are generally available for interviews: Arizona, Connecticut, Washington D.C., Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Virginia, Vermont, Washington and Wisconsin. 

Affiliates may be interested in drawing from their local stations. Boston has NBC (NBC Boston/New England Cable News and Telemundo), CBS (WBZ), Hearst (ABC affiliate WCVB), Sunbeam (WHDH) and Cox Media (Fox affiliate WFXT) television news broadcast stations. 

SCHEDULE:

Tuesday, December 5

 

8:30 a.m. — Networking Breakfast

9 a.m. — Welcome from Chief Frederick Ryan, P.A.A.R.I. Co-Chairman, Arlington, Mass.

9:20 a.m. — Welcome from Sandro Galea, Dean, BU School of Public Health

9:30 a.m.  — Welcome from John Rosenthal, P.A.A.R.I. Co-Founder and Co-Chairman

9:45 a.m. — Introduction of Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker from Chief Frederick Ryan and John Rosenthal

10 a.m. — Remarks from Gov. Charlie Baker

10:15 a.m. — Opioid Epidemic and P.A.A.R.I. 101

  • Allie Hunter McDade, P.A.A.R.I. Executive Director, Boston
  • John Rosenthal, P.A.A.R.I. Co-Founder and Co-Chairman, Gloucester
  • Chief Frederick Ryan, P.A.A.R.I. Co-Chairman, Arlington

11 a.m. — Intake Programs 101

  • Lt. Jeremiah Nicastro, Gloucester
  • Chief Robbie Moulton, Scarborough, Maine
  • Sgt. Brittney Garrett, Jeffersontown, Kentucky
  • Katie Donovan, Hope Not Handcuffs, Macomb County, Michigan

Noon — Networking Lunch

12:30 p.m. — Outreach Programs 101

  • Chief Frederick Ryan, Arlington
  • Sgt. Mike Braley, Everett, Washington
  • Dan Cortez, Community Engagement Specialist, Chelsea
  • Kelly Pompilio, Police Social Worker, Alexandria, Kentucky
  • Chief Ed Walsh, Taunton

1:30 p.m. — How do we know this is working?

  • Dr. Davida Schiff, Massachusetts General Hospital
  • Sean Varano, Kelley Research Associates and Roger Williams University
  • Tomoko Udo, University of Albany School of Public Health
  • Capt. Dave Batchelor, Chelsea

2:15 p.m. — How do we include the recovery community?

  • Tito Rodriguez, P.A.A.R.I. Care Advocate & Outreach Worker, Gloucester
  • Cody Desmond, P.A.A.R.I. AmeriCorps Recovery Coach, Lynn
  • Steve Lesnikoski, P.A.A.R.I. Care Advocate & Outreach Worker, Essex County
  • Margie Taylor, P.A.A.R.I. AmeriCorps Program Coordinator, Burlington

3:15 p.m. — Spotlight on Essex County Sheriff’s Department

  • Sheriff Kevin Coppinger
  • Gary Barrett, Community Relations Coordinator
  • Darya Maslova, Assistant Director of Programs

3:45 p.m. — Closing Remarks from Chief Frederick Ryan

Wednesday, December 6

 

8:30 a.m. — Networking Breakfast

9 a.m. — Welcome from Chief Danny Langloss, P.A.A.R.I. Police Council Member, Dixon, Illinois

9:30 a.m. — Remarks from Gil Kerlikowske on criminal justice research on the opioid crisis

10 a.m. —  Remarks from Sarah Gordon Chiaramida, Massachusetts Association of Health Plans

10:15 a.m. —  How do we make an evidence-based treatment referral?

  • Dr. Alexander Walley, Boston Medical Center
  • Dr. Sarah Wakeman, Massachusetts General Hospital
  • Dr. Shorta Yuasa, Lahey Health Behavioral Services

11 a.m. — Spotlight on Plymouth County Outreach

  • Chief Scott Allen, East Bridgewater
  • Chief Michael Botieri, Plymouth
  • Lt. Richard Linehan, Brockton
  • Hillary Dubois Farquharson, Brockton Area Opioid Abuse Prevention Collaborative
  • Sarah Cloud,  Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center

Noon — Networking Lunch

12:30 p.m. —  Spotlight on Anne Arundel Safe Stations

  • Maryland State’s Attorney Wes Adams
  • Lt. Steve Thomas
  • Jennifer Corbin, Director of Crisis Response

1:15 p.m. — How do we form behavioral health partnerships?

  • Chief Tom Bashore, Nashville, North Carolina
  • Amanda Flory, Social Worker, Nashville, North Carolina
  • Chief Robert Bongiorno, Bedford
  • Alia Toran-Burrell, Clinician, Central Middlesex County

2 p.m. — Spotlight on New England HIDTA

  • David Kelley, Deputy Director
  • Bryan Volpe, Drug Intelligence Officer, Rhode Island
  • Margaret Hester, Public Health Analyst
  • James Cormier, Drug Intelligence Officer

2:30 p.m. — How do I start a program in my community?

  • Chief Tim Lentz, Covington Louisiana
  • Chief Joseph Solomon, Methuen
  • Sergeant Pat Greenhill, Berea, Ohio
  • Captain Greg Skehan, Burlington

3:45 p.m. — Closing Remarks Chief Langloss and Chief Ryan

 

Quotes:

“The hundreds of law enforcement agencies that have joined P.A.A.R.I. in the fight against addiction have made a tremendous impact and saved numerous lives,” P.A.A.R.I. Co-Founder and Chairman John Rosenthal said. “This summit will give police leaders from communities large and small a chance to share ideas and learn from one another so that they can continue to build upon their success in the fight to end the opioid epidemic.”

“The Commonwealth of Massachusetts relies on the innovative techniques and strategies developed by our local law enforcement officials to fight against the opioid epidemic,” Gov. Charlie Baker said. “We are glad the Police Assisted Addiction and Recovery Initiative chose to host a summit focused on bringing the best and the brightest in law enforcement together and we look forward to the progress this group can help us make on prevention, intervention, treatment and recovery.”

“Law enforcement has played a critical role in responding to the nationwide opioid epidemic, and we understand that recovery happens in the community,” Chief Ryan said. “I am very encouraged by the projected turnout for the inaugural P.A.A.R.I. National Law Enforcement Summit, and I look forward to sharing our experiences and learning the best practices of my colleagues from around the nation.”

 

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COIN Receives AmeriCorps Grant from P.A.A.R.I. to Bring on Full-Time Program Coordinator

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For Immediate Release

Friday, Oct. 6, 2017

Contact: John Guilfoil
Phone: 978-743-0004
Email: [email protected]

COIN Receives AmeriCorps Grant from P.A.A.R.I. to Bring on Full-Time Program Coordinator

Interested Applicants Encouraged to Apply

PEPPERELL — Chief David Scott is pleased to announce that the Community Outreach Initiative Network (COIN) received an AmeriCorps grant from the Police Assisted Addiction and Recovery Initiative (P.A.A.R.I.) to bring on a full-time program coordinator to support its efforts in member communities.

The program coordinator role is a one-year position and COIN is currently looking for interested applicants.

COIN, a 10-town collaborative in northwest Middlesex County, works to assist those suffering from substance abuse and mental health disorders by connecting them to services and treatment options in order to divert them from the criminal justice system.

Over the summer, P.A.A.R.I. partnered with AmeriCorps to place 20 part-time recovery coaches and five full-time program coordinators with police departments in Massachusetts, enabling those agencies to dramatically enhance their capacity to reach individuals in need and better support them as they work to access treatment and recovery programs and services. The program launched this month, and COIN is one of the organizations to earn a grant to support a full-time program coordinator.

“We’re happy to have received one of the AmeriCorps grants to bring in a full-time person who can further the work we’re already doing surrounding substance abuse and mental health,” Chief Scott said. “We encourage anyone who has an interest in these fields to apply.”

The program coordinator will work with COIN’s part-time interim health clinician and will:

  • Perform general outreach and help with awareness activities
  • Organize fundraisers and open house style awareness events, and compile information for outreach packets
  • Assist with locating and reviewing treatment facilities
  • Help police departments with referrals and data collection
  • Attend/take notes on steering committee and working group meetings
  • Organize prescription drug and needle disposal throughout member towns
  • Represent COIN at local awareness group meetings such as North Middlesex Cares and the Societal Heroin Addiction Awareness Resource Project.

The program coordinator will receive a monthly living allowance of $1,152.50, health insurance, professional development opportunities and valuable experience working in the field.

Those interested in applying should do so here.

About COIN:
The Northwest Middlesex County Community Outreach Initiative Network (COIN) is a collaboration among 10 police departments — Pepperell, Ashby, Townsend, Groton, Shirley, Ayer, Boxborough, Dunstable, Westford and Littleton – committed to addressing mental health issues and substance abuse disorders in their communities. Through its partnership with Family Continuity, a local mental health provider, COIN has brought in a mental health clinician to assist the departments with finding help for their residents in need and diverting them from the criminal justice system.

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