Background:
Each year, PAARI is proud to award distinguished leaders in the field of deflection (non-arrest pathways to treatment and recovery). Awards are given in the categories of Community, Public Safety and Government. This year, we also added the category of “Outstanding Teams” to reflect the need for collaboration in the field of deflection.
This years winners are:
Leaders in Community: Kelly Pompilio, Tito Rodriguez, Lauren Sneider
Leaders in Public Safety: Officer Arthur DePinho, Captain Renae Lockhart, Connie Priddy, Chief Amy Prock and Chief Jeff Tate
Outstanding Teams: Cayce, SC team, Hamilton County QRT, Jeffersontown Kentucky REACH team, R2X Team, Winthrop CLEAR team
Leaders in Government: Senator Cory Booker, Director Jeremy Drucker, State Senator John Velis
Below you will find a brief background on their professional work in the field.
Leaders in Community:
Kelly Pompilio
Kelly Pompilio (Long) is a lifelong resident of Campbell County, Kentucky. Kelly began her social work career after graduating from Northern Kentucky University in 2004 with the Cabinet for Health and Family Services as an ongoing worker. Kelly held various positions while at the Cabinet including ongoing worker, investigative worker, intake worker, and specialized investigator. Kelly worked her way up to become the Specialized Investigative Supervisor from 2013-2016 serving 8 counties in Kentucky. Kelly received her Bachelor’s Degree from Northern Kentucky University in 2004. Kelly was accepted into the Advanced Standing Program through the University of Louisville where she obtained her Master’s Degree in 2013. Kelly began her current position as a Police Social Worker (PSW) for the Alexandria Police Department in July 2016. As the first PSW in Kentucky, she assists the department’s officers by dealing with victims of abuse, neglect, domestic violence, substance abuse, mental health, and poverty. Kelly is a strong and vocal advocate for her clients, and she believes that change happens when people are given the guidance they need to draw on their own strengths and realize their potential to live fulfilling, happy lives. Kelly provides an environment of compassion and support to help individuals and families overcome obstacles to move forward and thrive.
Tito Rodriguez
Over thirty-five years of experience working in Criminal Justice field with young people, young adults, families and communities. Co-founder of Casa Esperanza in Roxbury Ma. Over forty years of professional, advocacy and personal involvement in addiction arena. Currently Community Navigator on the Gloucester Police Department Community Impact Unit, previously worked as Jail Diversion Coordinator, Lynn Police Department, Lynn, MA and Police Assisted Addiction Recovery Initiative P.A.A.R.I., Care Advocate, Lead Recovery Coach & Outreach Specialist – Co-Responder, Gloucester, MA – (Angel Program). Co-Founder of the Teach 2 Reach Recovery Coach Program.
Lauren Sneider
Lauren H. Sneider has served as Program Manager for BEST’s Criminal Justice Diversion Program since 2014. In this role, she has provided leadership for the Police Co-Response Program at Boston Medical Center, a partnership with Boston Police. Lauren has been a Co-Coordinator for the Boston Police CIT-Training and Technical Assistance Center since its inception and provides training on police response to mental health crises at the Boston Police Academy. Having earned Master’s degrees in Mental health Counseling and Criminal Justice from Suffolk University, Lauren’s career has centered on community behavioral health, primarily at the intersection with the Criminal Justice System as a service provider, supervisor, and trainer. Lauren’s previous professional experience has included the provision of care in inpatient psychiatric settings and within the correctional environment.
Leaders in Public Safety
Officer Artie DePinho
Artie DePinho is an officer assigned to the Boston Police Department’s Street Outreach Unit. He is dedicated to assisting people experiencing substance use disorder, mental illness, and homelessness by providing them with resources and connecting them with services. Artie is community policing oriented and is involved with the department’s Co-Response Jail Diversion Program and the Hub Model/Situation Tables.
Captain Renae Lockhart – Chase Sapp and Nicole Rice accepting award
Captain Renae Lockhart joined the Raleigh Police Department in 2002 after earning a bachelor’s degree in social work. She has served as a patrol officer, domestic violence officer, training officer, patrol supervisor, and youth programs supervisor. In 2022, she became the Lieutenant for Raleigh’s ACORNS program (Addressing Crises through Outreach, Referrals, Networking and Service). Captain Lockhart has also been a certified Criminal Justice Instructor for over 14 years where she teaches topics like domestic violence response, implicit bias, and de-escalation.
Connie Priddy
Connie Priddy functioned for 25 years as a Flight Nurse for a hospital-based medical helicopter, before transitioning to a county-based EMS system. She currently serves as Director of Quality Compliance at Cabell County EMS, and Program Coordinator for the Huntington QRT. She was recognized as West Virginia Office of EMS Instructor of the Year for 2018, and she assisted in the development and implementation of the QRT (Quick Response Team) model in Huntington, WV – a collaborative effort between EMS, Law Enforcement, Treatment Providers, and Faith-Based Leaders. She recently served on several advisory boards to develop the “First-Responder Deflection Program” on a national level which includes developing standards and sharing data collection methods. Connie continues to promote first-responder involvement as a critical component in fighting the opioid crisis through information sharing.
Chief Amy Prock
Amy Prock, Chief of Police for the Myrtle Beach Police Department, has served since 1996 in roles across Patrol, Special Operations, Administrative, and Investigative Divisions. Her 26-year career spans diverse assignments, including Street Crimes, Narcotics, Traffic, Patrol, and Detectives. A member of the Critical Incident Negotiations Team, she attended the FBI National Academy, NC State’s Administrative Officers Management Program, and other law enforcement leadership trainings. She holds a Bachelor’s in Criminal Justice and a Master’s in Psychology. Chief Prock is dedicated to community collaboration, team development, and the department’s mission. Motivated by making a difference, she embraces the motto, “Public Safety is a shared responsibility,” and values working with the Myrtle Beach community and her team to achieve shared goals through communication and teamwork.
Chief Jeff Tate
Chief Tate has been with the Shakopee Police Department since 1998 and has served as Police Chief since 2009. During his tenure as chief, he has received the MN Department of Public Safety’s “Distinguished Public Leadership Award”, The Mn Chiefs of Police Association’s “President’s Award”, and the police department has twice received the IACP’s “Excellence in Community Policing Award” as well as their “Excellence in Victim Services Award”. One of the programs the IACP highlighted is its Recovery Assistance Program, which assists residents financially during their recovery process. The program has received state-wide recognition and has been replicated in other Minnesota Communities. Shakopee was the first department in Minnesota to join PAARI.
Outstanding Teams
Cayce, SC Team
- The Courage Center: Amber Frazier, Trish England, and Pam Imm
- Lindsay McDade – Community Risk Reduction Manager, Cayce Fire Department
- Masters Inn Hotel
In September 2023, The Courage Center and the Cayce Fire Department formed a transformative partnership to combat the opioid crisis, spearheaded by Trish England, Amber Frazier, and Lindsey McDade. With an introduction by Austin Pace of Lexington County EMS, the team collaborated with the Police Assisted Addiction & Recovery Initiative (PAARI) to implement harm reduction measures at Masters Inn, a high-overdose location. These efforts included installing a syringe disposal box and placing Narcan near fire extinguishers, which saved lives, including a guest revived by a housekeeper. Looking ahead, the partnership plans innovative initiatives like equine-assisted activities to support recovery, reflecting their dedication to fostering safer, healthier communities.
Hamilton County QRT Team
- Meagan Guthrie – Director, Hamilton County Office of Addiction Response and Civilian Programming Director of the Quick Response Team,
- Tom Fallon – Ret. Commander, Hamilton County Heroin Task Force and Quick Response Team,
- Abigail Fritsch – Grants and Strategic Initiatives Administrator, Hamilton County Office of Addiction Response,
- Michael Davenport – Commander, Hamilton County Heroin Task Force and Law Enforcement Director of the Quick Response Team
Launched in April 2018, Hamilton County’s Quick Response Team (QRT) uses a collaborative, co-responder model to address substance use disorder, mental health challenges, homelessness, and related issues. Evolving from post-overdose response, the QRT now addresses broader needs, including housing stability and social determinants of health, connecting individuals to services like treatment, recovery support, and case management. With over 12,650 referrals, 23,300 interactions, and 35,300 harm reduction materials distributed, the QRT has become a nationally recognized model, earning praise from federal agencies and showcasing its innovative approach to building safer, healthier communities.
Jeffersontown REACH Team
- Amanda Chapman LCSW – Community Resource Supervisor, Jeffersontown Police Department
- Tia Pank – Community Resource Coordinator, Jeffersontown Police Department
- Stacie Jones- Victim Services Specialists, Jeffersontown Police Department
- Chief Richard Sanders – Jeffersontown Police Department
The Jeffersontown Police Department’s REACH Unit, launched in 2022, is a social worker-led deflection program addressing challenges like victimization, substance misuse, mental health issues, and homelessness. By integrating services such as the Angel Program and Victim Services, REACH connects individuals to support through police encounters, outreach, and referrals. Offering crisis intervention, harm reduction, safety planning, and partnerships for legal aid, housing, and treatment, REACH has impacted over 4,000 individuals, delivered 14,676 services, and supported over 3,000 families. The unit also leads the Louisville Situation Table, addressing high-risk cases within 48 hours, and has distributed over 221 Narcan kits and installed 12 emergency Narcan boxes. Focused on trauma-informed, evidence-based care, REACH promotes healing, recovery, and long-term stability for the community.
R2X Team
- Jason Bienert – Sr. Research Nurse · Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
- Tracy Camacho – Clinical Research Coordinator, Thomas Jefferson University
- Dr. Traci Green – Behavioral Health Expert and Director of the Opioid Policy Research Collaborative
- Becca Olson – Project Manager, Opioid Policy Research Center, Brandeis University
- Dr. Mary Jo Larson – Senior Scientist, Opioid Policy Research Center, Brandeis University
- Dr. Megan Reed – Research Assistant Professor, Thomas Jefferson University
In 2023, PAARI partnered with Thomas Jefferson University and Brandeis University to ensure our partners were well-informed and equipped with best practices to address the emerging threat of xylazine in their communities. The Project was carried out in three stages. In Phase 1: Thomas Jefferson University led focus groups with people who use drugs to gain an understanding of how this drug was affecting its users. In Phase 2: PAARI, Brandeis University, and Thomas Jefferson conducted three nationwide trainings for public safety officers and community members with the aim of informing them about xylazine, its history, and the correct overdose response for the drug. Finally, in Phase 3: Community workshops were conducted with 10 communities and 84 participants in order to craft customized community interventions to xylazine. A more in-depth Xylazine 102 training was convened to share developed resources formed from the workshops. In total, the Xylazine 101 and 102 trainings attracted over 2,000 registrants.
Winthrop CLEAR
- Lieutenant Sarko Gergerian, MS, MA, MHC, CARC, RCP, RCPF – Winthrop Public Safety & Health Department, C.L.E.A.R. Team
- Meredith Hurley, RN, MPH – Director, Winthrop Department of Public Health & Clinical Services
- Retired Chief Terence Delehanty – Winthrop Police Department
Established in 2014, the Winthrop Community and Law Enforcement Assisted Recovery (C.L.E.A.R.) Program is a partnership between the Winthrop Department of Public Health and Police Department to address opioid fatalities and provide alternatives to incarceration for substance use. Initially focused on embedding peer recovery services within a co-response model, the program’s goals include reducing unhealthy substance use, using police data to identify at-risk individuals, conducting outreach via a peer recovery specialist, and providing harm reduction tools like Naloxone. Now a multifaceted deflection program, C.L.E.A.R. addresses mental health, social determinants of health, and intimate partner violence. Its team includes clinicians, peer recovery coaches, resource coordinators, navigators, and outreach officers, working to prevent criminal justice involvement and emergency room visits through collaborative case management and outreach management, and harm reduction practices.
Leadership in Government
Cory Booker, United States Senator from the state of New Jersey: Official Bio
Senator Cory Booker has been a proactive advocate for addiction treatment and recovery. In August 2023, he introduced the bipartisan Rehabilitation and Recovery During Incarceration Act, aiming to grant states the option to use Medicaid and CHIP funds to provide mental health and substance use services to incarcerated individuals. This legislation seeks to dismantle barriers preventing access to essential treatments during incarceration, thereby reducing recidivism and promoting successful reintegration into society.
Earlier, in May 2024, Senator Booker, alongside Senator Mike Braun, introduced the Substance Use Prevention and Pharmacy Oriented Recovery Treatment Prescription Act (SUPPORT Rx Act). This bill proposes a three-year pilot program to establish pharmacy-based addiction care, enhancing access to treatments like buprenorphine for opioid use disorder. The initiative leverages community pharmacies to provide low-barrier, evidence-based addiction services, addressing the escalating opioid crisis.
Throughout his tenure, Senator Booker has consistently championed policies to expand access to addiction treatment and harm reduction programs, reflecting his commitment to addressing the nation’s substance use challenges.
Jeremy Drucker, Director of the Office of Addiction and Recovery for the state of Minnesota
Jeremy Drucker is the state’s first Addiction and Recovery Director and is a person in long-term recovery. In this role, he chairs a subcabinet of state agencies focused on improving outcomes for Minnesotans experiencing substance use disorder, their families, and their communities. Prior to being appointed as the Addiction and Recovery Director, he led his own public affairs consultancy. He has worked in public affairs and government in New York City and Minnesota for nearly 20 years, including as a senior health care official for the state’s Medicaid program and health insurance exchange. Drucker received his B.A. from the University of St. Thomas and his M.A. from the City University of New York, and he was a University of Minnesota Humphrey Policy Fellow from 2011 to 2012.
John Velis, Massachusetts State Senator
State Senator John Velis of Massachusetts has been a strong advocate for people struggling with substance use disorder, pushing for better access to treatment, recovery services, and mental health care. He has worked to improve support systems for veterans, increase funding for harm reduction initiatives, and promote legislation that prioritizes treatment over incarceration. His leadership has helped strengthen community recovery efforts and make sure people get the help they need.
