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:
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…
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
Gina Outhuse, top center, of Westfield leads the first meeting of a six-week art group held in the large gathering space of the Northampton Recovery Center’s new home on Armory Street in Northampton on Friday, May 21, 2021.
STAFF PHOTO/KEVIN GUTTING, Hampshire Gazette 5-22-21
NORTHAMPTON – On April 20, the Northampton Recovery Center (NRC) ushered in an exciting new era, opening a fully-renovated location at 25 Armory Street, in what used to be the La Fiorentina bakery in the heart of the city. This Friday, their first new program begins with the offering of a six-week art group. With nearly 3000 square feet, the new center is more than double the size of the former space at 2 Gleason Plaza, where it’s been located since May of 2018. The NRC began back in 2016, with the community gathering two afternoons a week in a meeting room generously donated by the historic Edwards Church on Main Street.
In late 2019, the NRC was delighted to learn it had been awarded one of eight additional Peer Recovery Support Center (RSC) contracts from the state’s Bureau of Substance and Addiction Services (BSAS). As one of 26 BSAS-funded RSCs, the NRC is supported under the umbrella of the Western Massachusetts Training Consortium (Consortium) along with the RECOVER Project in Greenfield, that became the first BSAS-funded RSC in the state nearly 20 years ago. At $400,000 a year for three years, this funding provides for the costs associated with running a peer supported recovery center. The NRC is now fully staffed, with three full-time and two part-time employees, including a Director, Volunteer Coordinator, Outreach and Community Engagement Coordinator, Peer Coordinator and Administrative Assistant.
To meet state regulations, the NRC is required to feature a large gathering space, a quiet room, a staff room and a full kitchen. Extensive renovations to this new space were funded in part by a generous $16,000 Beveridge Family Foundation Grant, with the remainder provided by the Consortium. The fully-upgraded kitchen is well equipped with a large stove, two ovens, two sinks, an island, and ample cooking supplies, and will function in some ways as the heart of the center, according to NRC Director Lynn Ferro. “Previous experience at our center has shown us that shared meals bring people together and creates community.” Down the road, Ferro said she expects the kitchen will be the locale for teaching NRC members basic cooking and baking skills, and for a cultural culinary exchange. Four staff or members have already earned Serv-Safe food handler certification, with one acting as “Food Manager” for the Center. In addition, the NRC now has a conference room, two accessible bathrooms with baby changing tables, storage lockers and computer terminals for member use, a sitting/reception area and a large community room. A sidewalk-facing alcove will be used to mount member-created art exhibits.
From its humble beginnings, operating on seed money from the Northwestern District Attorney’s office, donations from committed community members and United Way, the NRC now has the capacity to be open 50 hours a week, meeting a dire need for community-based recovery support. Wyatt Pease, a member and volunteer says “I find it most beneficial to just connect with people. Anytime you need help, no matter what it is, someone is willing to listen or point you in the direction of someone who can help you.”
Available to anyone interested in recovery-friendly community, anticipated programming includes: trauma-informed yoga classes (with all brand-new supplies), cooking and art classes, as well as music events, movie nights, and job-readiness support. “The essential element of Recovery Centers is the people of course, but this new space holds so much promise for providing a welcoming place for all people at any stage, on any path of recovery,” said Ferro. Recently, a visitor looked around and said “what a beautiful and dignified place to seek recovery”!
For more information: NRC Director Lynn Ferro
(413) 834-8627
[email protected]
Northampton Recovery Center opens in new, larger space to expand programming
NORTHAMPTON, MA May 17, 2021 – On April 20, the Northampton Recovery Center (NRC) ushered in an exciting new era, opening a fully-renovated location at 25 Armory Street, in what used to be the La Fiorentina bakery in the heart of the city. This Friday, their first new program begins with the offering of a six-week art group. With nearly 3000 square feet, the new center is more than double the size of the former space at 2 Gleason Plaza, where it’s been located since May of 2018. The NRC began back in 2016, with the community gathering two afternoons a week in a meeting room generously donated by the historic Edwards Church on Main Street.
In late 2019, the NRC was delighted to learn it had been awarded one of eight additional Peer Recovery Support Center (RSC) contracts from the state’s Bureau of Substance and Addiction Services (BSAS). As one of 26 BSAS-funded RSCs, the NRC is supported under the umbrella of the Western Massachusetts Training Consortium (Consortium) along with the RECOVER Project in Greenfield, that became the first BSAS-funded RSC in the state nearly 20 years ago. At $400,000 a year for three years, this funding provides for the costs associated with running a peer supported recovery center. The NRC is now fully staffed, with three full-time and two part-time employees, including a Director, Volunteer Coordinator, Outreach and Community Engagement Coordinator, Peer Coordinator and Administrative Assistant.
To meet state regulations, the NRC is required to feature a large gathering space, a quiet room, a staff room and a full kitchen. Extensive renovations to this new space were funded in part by a generous $16,000 Beveridge Family Foundation Grant, with the remainder provided by the Consortium. The fully-upgraded kitchen is well equipped with a large stove, two ovens, two sinks, an island, and ample cooking supplies, and will function in some ways as the heart of the center, according to NRC Director Lynn Ferro. “Previous experience at our center has shown us that shared meals bring people together and creates community.” Down the road, Ferro said she expects the kitchen will be the locale for teaching NRC members basic cooking and baking skills, and for a cultural culinary exchange. Four staff or members have already earned Serv-Safe food handler certification, with one acting as “Food Manager” for the Center. In addition, the NRC now has a conference room, two accessible bathrooms with baby changing tables, storage lockers and computer terminals for member use, a sitting/reception area and a large community room. A sidewalk-facing alcove will be used to mount member-created art exhibits.
From its humble beginnings, operating on seed money from the Northwestern District Attorney’s office, donations from committed community members and United Way, the NRC now has the capacity to be open 50 hours a week, meeting a dire need for community-based recovery support. Wyatt Pease, a member and volunteer says “I find it most beneficial to just connect with people. Anytime you need help, no matter what it is, someone is willing to listen or point you in the direction of someone who can help you.”
Available to anyone interested in recovery-friendly community, anticipated programming includes: trauma-informed yoga classes (with all brand-new supplies), cooking and art classes, as well as music events, movie nights, and job-readiness support. “The essential element of Recovery Centers is the people of course, but this new space holds so much promise for providing a welcoming place for all people at any stage, on any path of recovery,” said Ferro. Recently, a visitor looked around and said “what a beautiful and dignified place to seek recovery”!
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/.
It is often said that the answer to the isolation of addiction is community.
That begs the question: How do we stay connected in a world where self-quarantining and social distancing have become the norm? This is the story of how we found ways to do just that…
