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Cultural Appreciation Day celebrated outside Franklin County Justice Center

Cultural Appreciation Day celebrated outside Franklin County Justice Center

by | Nov 1, 2021 | In The News

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Posted:  / Updated: 

GREENFIELD, Mass. (WWLP) – Franklin County is so proud of the diversity of its courthouse personnel, they celebrated with a Cultural Appreciation Day.

It’s not every day you hear the Libro Azul Latin Jazz and Salsa band playing on the lawn of the Franklin County Justice Center, providing food and acrobatics and welcoming an audience of passersby. Northwestern District Attorney David Sullivan told 22News, the criminal justice system in Franklin County has much to be proud of.

“I’m just thrilled there is a band in front of the courthouse that welcomes people and that it’s a Latinex band that celebrates our diversity not just the court system, but the whole community. How has the court system adapted to this new age diversity? I think they’ve done a great job, and they’ve made a point that we have members of all communities that also work here,” said Northwestern District Attorney David Sullivan.

Over several hours, courthouse personnel celebrated through music and other forms of positive courthouse interaction.

Massachusetts Trial Court Chief Justice Paula Carey was joined with Massachusetts Trial Court Administrator John Bello, and Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court Associate Justice Serges Georges, Jr., with other community and youth speakers.

[…]

Hilltown Recovery Theatre will be offering aerial arts demonstrations as well. Community organizations offering resources and information at the event include:

  • Center for Human Development
  • Children’s Advocacy Center of Franklin and North Quabbin
  • Greenfield Community College
  • Hilltown Recovery Theatre
  • Massachusetts Department of Mental Health
  • North Quabbin Community Coalition
  • Office of Northwestern District Attorney David E. Sullivan
  • Opioid Task Force of Franklin County and the North Quabbin Region
  • Recovery Connection Centers of America
  • Stone Soup Café
  • The RECOVER Project

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Family support agencies team up for ‘Community Baby Shower’

by | Sep 28, 2021 | In The News

By MARY BYRNE
Staff Writer
Published: 9/28/2021 3:29:30 PM

GREENFIELD — A coalition of family support agencies is hosting a “Community Baby Shower” at Court Square on Saturday, Oct. 2, to help families navigate the resources available to

The baby shower, hosted by the Franklin County Perinatal Support Coalition, will take place next to the Greenfield Farmers’ Market from 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., according to Mollie Hartford, development and outreach director with It Takes a Village, one of the participating organizations.

During the event, several family support organizations will have tables set up for families to learn about the resources that are available to them. The organizations include: The Birthplace at Baystate Franklin Medical Center, Center for Human Development (CHD), Children’s Advocacy Center of Franklin County and North Quabbin, Community Action Family Center, Community Action Head Start and Early Learning Programs, Criterion Child Enrichment, Healthy Families, Moms Do Care, the Salasin Project, ServiceNet and the Women, Infants and Children (WIC) program.

“Families can show up, move from table to table to get signed up for resources, or to bring home some information,” Hartford said. “It’s like throwing a baby shower, but instead of all the stuff, you get access to lots of connections and resources.”

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HOPE grows: Expanding fight against addiction

HOPE grows: Expanding fight against addiction

by | Sep 25, 2021 | In The News

By J. CHERRY SULLIVANand MERRIDITH O’LEARY

For the Gazette

Published: 9/25/2021 7:59:06 AM

“…The newest addition to this team is the Northampton Prevention Coalition, the city’s long-running youth substance use prevention coalition, led by coordinator Kara McLaughlin (who came on board in the summer.) For 10 years, the NPC was based in the school department, funded by a federal Drug Free Communities grant. Bringing youth substance use prevention work into the health department makes sense. To adequately respond to the addiction epidemic plaguing our nation, we need to view prevention broadly and address it much earlier.

Our prevention team is building upon Hampshire HOPE accomplishments, including:

  • The tried and true strategies of overdose prevention work: Changing cultural norms around safe storage and proper, timely disposal of medications; promoting harm reduction and working with organizations, like Tapestry, that do it so well; redoubling efforts to distribute Narcan; never missing an opportunity to confront stigma and misunderstanding.
  • Being a catalyst for the creation of the now-robust Northampton Recovery Center;
  • Working together with local business, municipalities, higher education, and social service agencies to provide Narcan training and distribution;
  • Placing NaloxBoxes that provide emergency Narcan in public buildings;
  • Serving as convener and connector of community partnerships during the pandemic shutdown to ensure some of the most vulnerable in our community continued to get the support they needed…

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Sheriff’s office gets $2.6M grant to expand addiction treatment in jail

Sheriff’s office gets $2.6M grant to expand addiction treatment in jail

by | Sep 17, 2021 | In The News

The Franklin County Jail and House of Correction in Greenfield.

HOPE grows: Expanding fight against addiction

Tributes flow at Northampton Recovery Center’s grand opening

by | Aug 27, 2021 | In The News

Lynn Ferro, Director of the Northampton Recovery Center talks during the grand opening Thursday, August 26, 2021.By BRIAN STEELE
Staff Writer
Published: 8/26/2021 9:08:55 PM

NORTHAMPTON — “It’s hard for me to talk,” Ralph D’Amico said, choking back tears. “If I knew this type of stuff years ago, I wouldn’t be in the situation I am now.”

He was speaking to a standing-room-only crowd Thursday afternoon at the grand opening of the Northampton Recovery Center’s new location at 25 Armory St., the site of the former La Fiorentina Pastry Shop.

“This is like my family,” D’Amico said, describing for more than 50 people the impact that the center’s addiction recovery programs have had on his life. “I came here, originally, from the Hampshire County jail. I had a lot of counseling, learned a lot about addiction. … Now I volunteer here twice a week.

“If you really need help and want a good place to go,” he said, once again losing his voice as he spoke through tears, “come here.”

Powerful emotions were on display at Thursday’s grand opening, but the atmosphere was one of celebration. The new 3,000-square-foot site is nearly triple the size of the previous one-room location at 2 Gleason Plaza, and features a wide range of amenities and recovery resources that were unavailable until now…

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You may support the NRC by visiting the Consortium’s secure donation page and choosing “Northampton Recovery Center” as the designated recipient: https://www.northamptonrecoverycenter.org/donate

Farmer’s market in Belchertown educates about Narcan

Farmer’s market in Belchertown educates about Narcan

by | Jul 27, 2021 | In The News

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Posted:  / Updated: 

BELCHERTOWN, MASS. (WWLP) – A farmers market booth offering information and Narcan in Belchertown was met with resistance by some online, 22News discovered it’s starting a conversation that could save lives.

“I was nervous for Sunday. I just saw the negative comments and that kind of stuck with me but the response was so amazing,” Alyssa Curran, the HEALing Communities Study Coordinator of the Western Massachusetts Training Consortium said.

Curran said when stigmas were revealed online a show of support came through. Normally when they give out Narcan at a park in Ware, they only hand out 6 boxes, but during the Sunday farmers’ market in Belchertown two weeks ago more was distributed.

“We gave out 20. We gave out so many that we ran out and Sergeant Lozier who was here ran back to the station because they had a supply of Narcan,” Abaigeal Duda, the Peer Recovery Project Coordinator of the Ware Regional Recovery Center said.

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The information booth offered people the chance to share their stories of addiction and recovery, whether it was them or a loved one. Duda said this is an issue that can be solved by having western Massachusetts people working together.

“It shows when people feel comfortable coming up and saying I would like to have this on hand that they will do it,” Duda said.

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