Essex County Sheriff Partners With P.A.A.R.I.

GLOUCESTER, MA – P.A.A.R.I., the Police Assisted Addiction and Recovery Initiative, will launch a two-year project with funding by a grant from the Evelyn Lilly Lutz Foundation.

The grant will help P.A.A.R.I. partner with more police departments in Essex County by adding more staff members to help police departments, steer participants into recovery, and train officers in Narcan administration.

The $185,000 grant has the potential to add $135,000 in 2018, and will expand P.A.A.R.I.'s work in Essex County, which experiences drug overdose deaths at a higher rate than both state and national averages. The grant enables P.A.A.R.I. to to work with four to eight new law enforcement partners in Essex County, and the Sheriff's Department is the first to become a project partner.

"The life-saving and game-changing work started by the Gloucester Police Department and P.A.A.R.I. less than two years ago has expanded like wildfire across the Commonwealth and Country," said John Rosenthal, co-founder and chairman of P.A.A.R.I. "Families in Essex County have been hit particularly hard by the opioid and heroin epidemic and we are very proud to partner with the Lutz Foundation and Beverly Hospital to bring more vital resources in the fight against the disease of addiction right here at home. Like with every other chronic disease without a cure, there are only two options, long term treatment or death."

P.A.A.R.I. and the Essex County Sheriff's Department will work to reduce the overdose rate among former inmates with rehabilitative, educational, and reentry programming to help inmates with substance use disorders successfully transition back into the community.

"I am pleased to partner with The Police Assisted Addiction and Recovery Initiative (P.A.A.R.I.) in their work battling the opioid crisis," said Essex County Sheriff Kevin F. Coppinger. "This epidemic affects every part of our society and every part of our society must be engaged in combatting it. P.A.A.R.I is an important weapon in this fight and I look forward to working with them in battling this scourge."

P.A.A.R.I. also welcomes new Program Coordinator Victoria Kiarsis, who will build relationships and manage communication with P.A.A.R.I. partners in Essex County.

The new P.A.A.R.I. outreach workers will receive training and initial supervision from leaders of the Gloucester Police Department Angel Program and Arlington Police Department Outreach Initiative. Applications are currently being accepted for these two positions.

Dr. Suzanne Graves, President of the Lutz Foundation, initiated a request for proposals last summer to help encourage new thinking and new ideas for dealing with the escalating addiction crisis.

"Addiction continues to impact so many families in our community," said Graves. "The problem is nearly out of control, but the creative solutions that P.A.A.R.I. is proposing will allow for improved care and support through this innovative collaboration with Beverly and Addison Gilbert Hospitals."

Image via P.A.A.R.I.