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Local health practice boosts community supports at peer recovery center

Local health practice boosts community supports at peer recovery center

by | Mar 5, 2021 | In The News

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Mary Kate Farley
The Consortium
(413) 536-2401 x5511
[email protected]

Local health practice boosts community supports at peer recovery center

Atkinson Family Practice sponsors Ware Regional Recovery Center to address opiate use.

HOLYOKE, MA March 5, 2021 – Ware Regional Recovery Center (WRRC), a supported community of the Western Massachusetts Training Consortium and the Quaboag Hills Substance Use Alliance (QHSUA), recently announced a sponsorship from local Atkinson Family Practice (AFP) in Amherst and Northampton. AFP’s $2,000 sponsorship is a key example of WRRC’s collaborative efforts to centralize regional resources and create a vital space for people in recovery from substance use. There, they and their families can come together and find their own pathway to recovery while supporting health for all.

One project supported by the sponsorship is Belchertown Overcoming Addiction Together (BOAT), a peer-driven initiative to provide Narcan to the community. Narcan has gained increasing support as a life-saving measure to prevent fatal overdose from opiate use. To ensure availability in the community, BOAT has pioneered thoughtful ways to distribute Narcan under COVID-safe regulations throughout the past year. The project aims to continue these initiatives by utilizing different forms of virtual communication and mobile delivery by individuals supporting recovery efforts.

Mark Ryan, a PA-C and leader of Atkinson Family Practice’s Northampton Office Co-op Group, highlighted the value of recovery supports in Ware. “[AFP] is grateful for the opportunity to sponsor the WRRC in its mission to expand community efforts in treatment and prevention of substance misuse. Providing collaborative, compassionate care in a welcoming environment deeply resonates with the values of AFP.” This resonated deeply with Abaigeal Duda, WRRC Peer Recovery Project Coordinator. She noted, “[AFP’s] sponsorship of WRRC is not only a clear demonstration of [their] support, but also a model that people in our community do believe in the importance of our work to offer comprehensive support to people striving to live healthier, stronger lives.”

To learn more about the various offerings from or opportunities to become involved with Ware Regional Recovery Center, including the BOAT initiative, community members can Abaigeal Duda at [email protected]. They can also learn about the upcoming Ware/Belchertown HEALing Communities Study Coalition, set to start in 2022, by connecting with Belchertown/Ware Study Coordinator Alyssa M. Curran at [email protected]. Inspired community members who wish to contribute can find WRRC on Facebook or send a donation designated to WRRC or QHSUA at https://donatenow.networkforgood.org/theconsortium.

The Consortium, founded in 1975, is a learning organization committed to creating conditions in which people with lived experience pursue their dreams and strengthen our communities through full participation. To learn more, visit their website at http://wmtcinfo.org/.

Greenfield Notebook: March 2, 2021

Greenfield Notebook: March 2, 2021

by | Mar 3, 2021 | In The News

Support group offered for caregivers

GREENFIELD — The Salasin Project and The RECOVER Project are sponsoring a virtual support group for caregivers who have experienced domestic violence, substance use and/or recovery. The group has open enrollment, so there is no deadline by which to sign up.

The Nurturing Program for Families in Substance Abuse Treatment and Recovery is a 16-week, evidence-based group designed to offer adult caregivers educational information about human growth and development. This program explores the impact of substance abuse and domestic violence on children and families. The topics from week to week are designed to strengthen participants’ self-esteem and encourage models for guiding behaviors in children.

For more information, contact Lynn Norwood at [email protected] or 413-774-4307, ext. 3.

Salasin Project offering Zoom workshops

GREENFIELD — The Salasin Project is hosting a variety of groups on Zoom.

  • Weekly Watercolor: Beginners meet and practice watercolor techniques with activities and still lifes. Days and times vary each week.
  • Gentle yoga with Joyce Landau will be offered on March 18, from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
  • MEGAdance with Megan will be held on March 25 from noon to 12:45 p.m.

Groups are open to anyone and free to join. Email [email protected] or call 413-774-4307, ext. 4 for more information or to register.

Virtual talks to focus on herbal medicine, trauma-sensitive yoga

Virtual talks to focus on herbal medicine, trauma-sensitive yoga

by | Feb 24, 2021 | In The News

On Thursday from 2 to 3 p.m., Leslie Chaison and Nora Toomey, herbalists at the People’s Medicine Project, will share approaches to supporting people who are seeking recovery or who are in active recovery. According to an Opioid Task Force press release, the presentation will cover simple recipes and herbs that can help nourish the body through any phase of opioid use or recovery; support the nervous system, neuroendocrine rebalancing and gastrointestinal repair; and relieve common symptoms of post-acute withdrawal syndrome (PAWS) such as anxiety, insomnia, exhaustion and cravings. To register, visit bit.ly/3smoWDr.

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Web design business gives back through donation

by | Feb 16, 2021 | In The News

Published: 2/11/2021 1:33:59 PM

GREENFIELD — Common Media, a web design and communications business based at 278 Main St. Greenfield, recently donated to the Western Massachusetts Training Consortium, an umbrella organization that supports numerous local recovery communities.

According to a Western Massachusetts Training Consortium press release, the donation will support the work of The RECOVER Project, the Salasin Project, People’s Medicine Project, the Support Network and the Greenfield center of the Wildflower Alliance (previously known as the Western Mass Recovery Learning Community).

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Greenfield Notebook: March 2, 2021

Women’s Fund of Western Mass to award $250K to organizations that assist women

by | Feb 3, 2021 | In The News

by: 

Posted:  / Updated: 

(Photo Credit: Women’s Fund of Western Massachusetts)

Local Web Design Business Gives Back to Franklin County Community

by | Jan 25, 2021 | In The News

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Mary Kate Farley
The Consortium
(413) 536-2401 x5511
[email protected]

Local Web Design Business Gives Back to Franklin County Community

During the holiday season, Common Media of Greenfield gifts gracious donation to the Consortium

HOLYOKE, MA January 25, 2021 – The Western Massachusetts Training Consortium is pleased to announce it has received a generous donation from Common Media, a web design and communications business based out of Greenfield. Common Media chose the Consortium alongside several other local non-profits to support in the Franklin County area. Their contributions to Western Massachusetts non-profits uplift crucial, mission-driven work throughout the region at a time when it’s most needed.

Kristi Ceccarossi, the CEO and co-owner of Common Media, described in an interview what inspired them to donate. Originally based in Hadley, Ceccarossi and her business partner Gabe Smith moved the business to Greenfield to feel like they were rooted in a community. “Part of our beliefs around this work is that being human is about being in community […] [W]e feel like it’s really important for us to be an active participant in whatever way we can.” With the needs of Franklin County residents close to their hearts, particularly surrounding substance use and recovery, Ceccarossi and Smith identified several impactful non-profits to share their success with.

When asked what motivated Common Media to support the Consortium, Ceccarossi noted how much she appreciated “the sort of 360 approach that I feel like the Consortium has. It’s not enough to just treat recovery this one way, you need to bring in the full circle of support. […] We’re very lucky that we have people who think that way in our community and who are so organized around those principles.

“[T]he Consortium’s work, sort of the spectrum of the work, is really inspiring.”

Beyond financial donations, Common Media seeks to connect with mission-driven projects to offer inclusively designed, human-centered web services. “[W]e’re here, and we’re interested in finding ways that we can plug into the work that other people are already doing and support it.”

Their donation will contribute to the incredible work of local Consortium-supported communities such as the RECOVER Project, Salasin Project, People’s Medicine Project, the Support Network, and the Greenfield center of the Wildflower Alliance (previously Western Mass Recovery Learning Community).

Interested in contributing? Check out the Consortium’s Network for Good donation page, where you can designate your donation to a community that speaks to you: https://donatenow.networkforgood.org/theconsortium

The Consortium, founded in 1975, is a learning organization committed to creating conditions in which people with lived experience pursue their dreams and strengthen our communities through full participation. To learn more, visit their website at http://wmtcinfo.org.