“I refuse to be another name in the paper and hope that if this can help people who are dealing with addiction or educate those who don’t understand addiction than I would be thankful. There are many more people out there that need help but are afraid to ask for fear of criticism and they’ll continue down the path they believe they deserve because of this fear. People need to be educated not locked up and/or ridiculed. If I can take the necessary steps they can too and if you can please PLEASE encourage your local police department to look into the Scarborough Police Departments Operation Hope program. It saved my life.”

“I can’t speak for everyone but I can tell you that if someone is honest about their recovery then their chances of success will improve dramatically. Both me and my girlfriend went in at the same time and I couldn’t be happier with the way we were treated. They were so kind and genuinely interested in my well-being that I have never felt such relief while talking to a police officer in a long long time. Not once did I get a sideways look or an off-hand comment because of my lifestyle. That alone made the decision to get clean an easier burden to bear and considering the fact that they were vigilant in my placement at a facility for the whole 9 hours I was there with an angel dialing numbers I couldn’t be more gracious. Without insurance it was near impossible to find a place who would take me and foot the bill for my first month or so until my insurance kicked in but once things were sorted out there was nigh a hesitation to book my flight immediately and that wasn’t cheap. I don’t know how many People who have or are going to go through this program are willing to put their name out there in support of this program like I am but if we can be even a small inspiration for People struggling than I’ve achieved another goal of mine next to my success. There’s no cure for addiction but I can tell you that Operation Hope is the best place to start.”

Operation HOPE is a PAARI Program started in the fall under the leadership of Scarborough Police Officer John Gill and Crime Analyst Jaime Higgins. To date, Scarborough Police have placed nearly 100 people in treatment despite existing in a state without detox beds and with a state government that is against providing treatment options for those suffering from the disease of addiction. Are you with a polcie or sheriff’s department? Click here to join us.