On Wednesday, July 17th, the Police Assisted Addiction and Recovery Initiative (PAARI) hosted its second annual meeting between their Public Safety and Lived Experience Councils. The groups gathered virtually to familiarize themselves with each other and provide feedback to PAARI for use in future materials, projects, and messaging.
The call was attended by 7 Lived Experience Council members. They began the meeting by introducing themselves and sharing their stories, explaining what brought them to serve on the council.
Their moving introductions were followed by those of the Public Safety Council members present. Chief Jeff Tate of Shakopee, MN, began by giving a brief overview of his department, which offers scholarships for community members to access treatment. His remarks were followed by Chief Steve D’Agata of Village of Liberty, NY, who spoke about his department’s Hope Not Handcuffs program, which includes officer and self-referral pathways. Chief Josh Bernegger of Watertown, CT, then spoke about his department’s deflection model program, focused on post-overdose response efforts. Chief Amy Prock described the coordinated community effort in her town of Myrtle Beach, SC, where over 70 service providers work together to offer wrap-around services to community members struggling with substance use, mental health, and other risk factors. Chief Edward Conley closed the introductions by providing a brief history of the Gloucester PAARI program, where PAARI first began. He spoke about the community impact unit and shared that they have trained many community members to become Recovery Coaches.
Following the introductions, PAARI staff members led two breakout rooms to discuss thought-provoking questions with the two councils. The groups deliberated and then returned to the larger group to share ideas. The questions discussed were:
- For Lived Experience Council members:
- From you or your loved one’s experience, what programs would you/they have benefited from?
- How can law enforcement build trust in the community to allow folks with lived experience to feel more comfortable getting help?
- For Public Safety Council members:
- How can folks with lived experience be of service to law enforcement in their immediate community?
- In a perfect world, what would be the first thing you would do to expand/strengthen your program?
- For both councils:
- What is the biggest barrier to ending the polysubstance use crisis?
Steve Jesi, PAARI Board member and chair of the Lived Experience Council notes, “PAARI is so lucky to have these two incredible councils as part of their leadership structure. The insights provided by these councils can and will be used to help PAARI further its mission.”
To learn more about and see if you are eligible to join the Lived Experience Council, click HERE.
To learn more about the Public Safety Council, click HERE.
