A Letter from Stephanie Campbell

Friends,

We recently learned that $42 million in additional funding was added to the State budget and earmarked for OASAS on April 9th. That is a step forward for people who will access prevention, treatment and recovery services.

The additional funding adds $30 million for heroin and opioid addiction services and $10 million for capital projects, including housing. READ MORE

New York State Recovery Conference

The 2017 NYS Recovery Conference will take place on October 1st- 2nd at the Albany Capital Center. Presented by FOR-NY and ASAP, this is a not-to-missed event for anyone interested in building, supporting, and sustaining recovery in New York State and beyond. Register today! READ MORE 

Recovery Community Organizations

In this issue of Recovery Talk, we introduce one of the newer RCOs to spring up in New York State, Friends of Recovery – Mohawk Valley (FOR-Mohawk). Thanks to FOR-Mohawk Valley’s Tom Reilly for providing an overview of the organization and what they’re doing to support recovery in the community. READ MORE

Recovery Community & Outreach Centers

We're delighted to report that the BestSelf Recovery Center celebrated its Grand Opening in Buffalo earlier this week. Supported by a $1.75 million award from OASAS, the center is a partnership between Lake Shore Behavioral Health, Inc. and Preventionfocus, Inc. and is a community-based, non-clinical resource for individuals and families recovering from a substance use disorder or are seeking recovery services for a family member or friend. READ MORE

Youth Clubhouses

The Creative Communications Clubhouse, featured in the June 2016 issue of Recovery Talk, was one of the first Youth Clubhouses to open in New York State. We recently caught up with its Director, TJ Czeski, and to say that the clubhouse is making a difference in the community could be the understatement of the year. The impact is evident in the numbers of youth coming through the doors every day, the feedback from local school administrators and faculty, and the support of the local business community. READ MORE

Turning Loss into Hope: Save the Michaels of the World

If you attended this year’s Stand Up for Recovery Day in Albany, you heard our friend, Avi Israel share the story of losing his twenty year-old son, Michael, to the disease of addiction; and how that loss inspired him to launch Save the Michaels of the World to raise awareness of the devastating effects of opioid medications. We’ve asked Avi to share his moving and inspiring story with our readers. READ MORE

Pathways of Recovery: Y12SR

We’re delighted to feature a relatively new, but increasingly popular pathway of recovery in this month’s Recovery Talk. Y12SR (or Yoga for 12 Step Recovery) was started by NYC-based Nikki Myers in YEAR and is catching on in communities around the world. We had the pleasure of speaking with two local instructors and are happy to report that Y12SR classes are springing up throughout the state. READ MORE

Recovery Coaching

What does the path to becoming a Certified Recovery Peer Advocate (CRPA) look like?  Where do CRPAs work, and what do they do?  This month Recovery Talk interviewed Fred Gaston, CRPA to highlight one person’s journey. READ MORE

Policy: Recovery High Schools

What if there was a place where young people could go that would greatly reduce their chances of relapse and possible death; and at the same time, save taxpayers hundreds of thousands of dollars, by averting teens from the criminal justice system and keeping them in the educational system? READ MORE

Family Recovery Resource Guide: Coming Soon

In this issue, we highlight one of the most important sections of our soon-to-be released Family to Family Recovery Resource Guide, “Taking Care of Yourself." READ MORE

Survey Results: Recovery Support Service Needs

In this month’s report on our series, Recovery in the Empire State, we turn our attention to several community Recovery Support Service needs that people in recovery identified as priorities. Read on to see the results and our interpretation. READ MORE