The City
of Fall River and SSTAR, an
addiction treatment and health care center, recently launched a program
called Project Assist
under the Community
Resilience and Recovery Initiative (CRRI).
The program, funded by a $5.6 million, four-year
grant from SAMSHA, the Substance
Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, provides counseling
and treatment services for residents affected by the bad economy. “The
program is designed to strengthen our community resources now, while we
are struggling with rising unemployment rates and poverty, so that we will
be better prepared for the economy of our future,” said Nancy Paull, CEO
of SSTAR. There are three major components of the program: 1) screening
for substance abuse or mental health problems, 2) projects to help access
and treat people affected by traumatic experiences, and 3) development of
projects that help fortify the larger community, such as community
gardening projects, drama and discussion, meditation or fitness classes,
community art/therapy projects, and healthy living groups. The center
anticipates screening 9,200 people, or ten percent of the city's
population, through this program. They expect about 30 percent of those
people who participate in the initial treatment will go on to participate
in longer term counseling at SSTAR. Click
here for photos of the community board meeting. For more information,
contact Paula Beaulieu at
508-837-6957.
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(Top row) CRRI
case manager/screeners Nancy Jones and Laura Washington talk with and
individual in the lobby of Government Center where they have been
available for several days to speak with potential applicants. (Bottom
row, left) Nancy Jones talks with two ladies who were just curious about
the program but did not want to apply. (Bottom row, right) CRRI grant
administrator Erica Moniz works out of the Mayor's Office to coordinate
the project.
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