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Lafayette substance abuse efforts get $851,000 grant

From Journal & Courier

LAFAYETTE, Ind. – Men and women wanting to overcome substance abuse, and those in the Greater Lafayette area championing their recovery, will now have nearly $1 million in funding to facilitate that recovery.

A grant from North Central Health Services totals more than $861,000, bestowed to Meridian Health Services and Home With Hope in Lafayette, mainly for residential treatment for men, women and mothers struggling to overcome substance abuse. The grant will fund therapy through completion of the program.

“This is really filling in a gap here in Lafayette,” said Stafka Poweleit, practice manager for addiction at Meridian Health Services. “Pregnant women fighting addiction didn’t have this type of facility. Before, women who wanted recovery might have to stay in the environment that could help them keep using.”

Finding a safe place to seek recovery is key to success, Poweleit said, and a welcoming place for a woman about to deliver or caring for a small child is paramount.

“A lot of times,” Poweleit told the Journal & Courier Tuesday, “their biggest concern is, ‘Who is going to take care of my child?’ By the time they seek treatment, they are often the only one still around caring for their child.”

This grant is transformational, especially at a time when substance abuse has been on the rise, a leader at North Central Health Services said.

“In 2018, the North Central Health Services Community Health Needs Assessment identified recovery services as an area of need for our community. During current community conversations and with the pandemic, we know that substance use is on the rise and poses a threat to the well-being of our community,” said Stephanie Long, president and CEO of North Central Health Services. “The Home with Hope revitalization project aligns with the (North Central Health Services) community strategic partnerships to support evidence-based substance use prevention programs and expand and enhance recovery housing.”

Prior to the grant’s announcement, according to Tuesday’s news release, Meridian had received letters of support from 11 area agencies recognizing the ongoing collaboration of recovery services in the Lafayette community. Home with Hope’s residents participate in a number of services and referrals for those in need of assistance in their facilities, including a 25-bed men’s recovery residence; and a 24-bed women’s recovery center for women without children and four apartments for women with children.

Within the next several months, Meridian will be adding more services, a news release stated, including a maternal treatment program and expansion of the men and women’s recovery homes once the merger is complete. Home for Hope, according to its website, started in 1971 with funds provided by the Lilly Endowment, Inc., and contributions from the Lafayette District of the United Methodist Church, the Lafayette Roman Catholic Diocese, the United Presbyterian Church, as well as local businesses and private citizens, the website states. An apartment complex at 920 N. 11th Street, was purchased in 1997. Each two-bedroom apartment is shared by four clients.

A decade later, in November 2007, Home With Hope opened a 25-bed residential recovery house at 1119 Ferry Street, thanks to a gift from North Central Health Services of Lafayette, with other generous assistance from the Community Foundation, West Lafayette
and many other community partners.

The Men’s Recovery Residence grant award total: $114,143.39
That program includes:

  • Peer Recovery Coaching
  • Intensive Outpatient Treatment
  • Individual Therapy
  • Skill Building
  • Connection to Employers
  • Case Management
  • Sober Recovery Housing

Residents have access to continuum of recovery services including inpatient, outpatient and transitional living. The program also connects to a variety of community resources within Tippecanoe and other counties.

Women’s Recovery Residence grant award total: $750,896.62
Included in the women’s recovery residence is Meridian’s Maternal Treatment Program:

  • At least a 6-month program for pregnant mothers and post-partum up to 2 years of age
  • Learn how to be recovered while learning to parent and become independent
  • Collaborations with local physicians for maternity treatment during pregnancy

The grant funding women-with-children apartments aims to combat a common obstacle to those clients seeking residential recovery help — such as who will take care of their children when they’re in recovery.

These women, the release stated, will be able to work on their recovery while providing a safe space for their children. The program also includes women’s only intensive outpatient treatment, which addresses women-specific needs in recovery, such as trauma, relationships, parenting, recovery and developing positive supports.

The women’s-only program includes peer recovery coaching, intensive outpatient therapy, individual therapy, skill building, connection to employers, case management and sober recovery housing.

“Creating healthier communities require strong community partnerships,” added Hank Milius, president and CEO of Meridian Health Services. “I am pleased that NCHS and the Lafayette community have demonstrated a commitment to support our efforts in addiction treatment and whole-person health.”