NIDA Kicks-off National Drug Facts Week

The National Institute on Drug Abuse’s (NIDA) Drug Facts Week began Monday, October 31 and runs through Sunday, November 6, 2011.  National Drug Facts Week (NDFW) works to bring together teens and scientific experts in communities across the country to discuss the real facts and shatter the myths about drug abuse.

Research has shown that a key ingredient for preventing drug use is ensuring that communities, parents, and kids have the most up-to-date, scientific information about drug use and their effects on the brain and body.  By joining forces and bringing young adults and scientific experts together with a common goal, NDFW aims to educate teens and encourage conversations.

NIDA will hold community events across the country through November 6.  For more information and to view the latest version of NIDA’s “Shatter the Myth” booklet, click here.

World Mental Health Day - October 10, 2011

Today is World Mental Health Day and this year’s theme is "Investing in Mental Health." The day was created to raise public awareness about mental health issues and to promote open discussion about mental health and investments in prevention, promotion, and treatment services. 

Due to the fact that there is a large treatment gap for mental, neurological and substance use disorders in poor countries, World Mental Health Day is an important tool to increase knowledge about the significant behavioral health disparities that persist in diverse communities across the globe.  Many countries have less than one mental health specialist per one million people. To reach these communities, there needs to be an increased investment for mental health and a push to shift available resources toward more effective forms of services delivered through primary health care and community settings.

Community Focus Group: Solutions for At-Risk Women in Wilmington

Can You Help Suggest Solutions for At-Risk Women in Wilmington?

Brandywine Counseling, SURJ, and the University of Delaware Need Your Ideas! 

Brandywine Counseling & Community Services, SURJ, and the University of Delaware are conducting focus groups at local community locations to find out how you think the community, the police, the courts, and the prison system can provide better services and solutions to women who may have gotten in trouble with the law, particularly prostitution. Your feedback will help to shape services that may be funded through a federal grant. Pizza & drinks provided.

This is an opportunity for Service Provider Professionals, Clients, and Community Members.

Hicks Anderson Community Center -- Monday, March 21, at 6:45 pm
501 N. Madison Street, Wilmington

and

Hilltop Lutheran Neighborhood Community Center -- Wednesday, March 23, at 6:45 pm
1018 W. 6th Street, Wilmington

To RSVP, please call Basha Silverman at (302) 655-9880 x123 or email bsilverman@bcidel.org.

Comments will be collected anonymously for a research project approved by UD's Board for the Protection of Human Subjects in Research.

Delaware Reentry Consortium

100 W. 10th Street

Wilmington, Delaware 19801

Education, Advocacy, Prevention, and Treatment

It’s hard to believe that 2010 is almost over and 2011 is just around the corner. Every year brings the promise of new beginnings, but this year ends with some big changes. 2011 will be the first full year we operate under the name Brandywine Counseling and Community Services, and we know it will be a good one.

Our new branding is designed to help you better understand who we are, what we do, and how you can utilize our services. By streamlining our services and programs into four simple and clearly defined areas of care, we have demystified our program menu.

The four areas of care at BCCS are: Education, Advocacy, Prevention, and Treatment. Every program we have now falls under one of these categories, and sometimes more than one.

Education means teaching clients the tools to recover from addiction and mental illness, and reduce their Hepatitis C (HCV) and HIV risk. We introduce life skills to new and expectant mothers, coach clients through job training exercises, and provide outreach and education to thousands of individuals each year who are not active in treatment. Education helps save lives, and each life saved touches other lives, families, and communities in the Delaware region.

Advocacy means “watching our clients’ back.” How do we do this? We do this by having case managers develop an individualized plan to prioritize our clients’ needs. We actively assist clients with:

• Accessing eligibility for housing
• Providing linkage to community services such as shelter, food, clothing and employment possibilities
• Standing up for our clients’ rights with the courts, probation, or Division of Family Services
• Helping clients navigate treatment options

BCCS ensures that our clients have all the support and guidance they need to break through the red tape that so often accompanies drug abuse and mental health issues. We have their back.

Prevention means giving people all the information and resources they need to recognize the signs of drug and alcohol abuse or mental health issues. Our scientifically-based interventions help individuals to recognize HIV and Hepatitis C (HCV) risk, learn their HIV and HCV status, and develop and manage their own reduction and prevention plan.

Treatment means addressing substance abuse and mental illness (behavioral health) directly, but also the side effects, such as family dysfunction and violence, child neglect and abuse, infant mortality, poverty, Hepatitis C (HCV) and HIV/AIDS and criminal activity. Our programs provide intervention and treatment through the use of medication, counseling, therapy and education. Appropriate aftercare referrals provide continuing support for recovery.

Please visit brandywinecounseling.org to learn more about the services and programs under our four areas of care, or stop by one of our locations to pick up a color-coded brochure.

Do you need a presentation for your community on one of these areas of care? The BCCS Prevention and Education Department will tailor any presentation to meet the needs of your community. We will provide accurate, useful information surrounding a broad range of topics, as they relate to substance use/abuse, and/or fetal alcohol spectrum disorders. Please contact us for more information.

These are exciting times for BCCS. You know where we have been. Now let’s look forward together to where we are heading!

Happy New Year, everyone!

Groundbreaking "Prostitution Diversion Project" Wins Federal Funding

U.S. Office of Women’s Health awards $100,000 grant to Brandywine Counseling & Community Services (BCCS)

Wilmington, DE – For the past several years, Brandywine Counseling & Community Services (BCCS) caseworkers have walked Wilmington streets from midnight to early morning, encouraging area prostitutes to enter into healthcare and counseling treatment programs. But it is the group’s proposed Prostitution Diversion Project – with its groundbreaking coalition of criminal justice, social service and public health systems - that caught the attention of the federal government and won BCCS a $100,000 grant from the U.S. Office of Women’s Health.

“We are delighted to be recognized for our collaborative approach to the issue of prostitution in Delaware,” said Dr. Lynn Fahey, CEO of BCCS. “These women are in need of both medical and social services but are often trapped in the criminal justice system with limited access. By aligning a network of representatives from all three systems, we can improve the health and welfare of female sex workers, and reduce the cycling rate in the court system of women with criminal charges linked to prostitution. This project is going to save Delaware taxpayers significant sums of money.”

The overall goal of the proposed Prostitution Diversion Project is to reduce the women’s reliance on sex work as a means of income. Originating from interest within Delaware’s Court of Common Pleas, Commissioner Mary McDonough reached out to BCCS to begin discussions around alternative approaches. Depending on the need, BCCS will offer assistance in the form of drug treatment, trauma counseling, job training and placement. The organization also heads up the coalition committee, which includes representatives from the multiple intercept points that interact with the prostitution population. Stakeholders on the committee include:

• Community health/public health providers/clinics
• Non-profit organizations and outreach programs serving at-risk individuals
• Law enforcement agencies
• Court professionals
• Corrections professionals
• Organizations providing services upon prison re-entry
• Our local Academic Institution; The University of Delaware

“Our proposal was small and very specific to protecting the health and welfare of women in the sex trade, so we were the underdogs in a very competitive grant process,” said Basha Silverman, Prevention Director and BCCS Project Coordinator. “I believe our ambitious project was chosen partly because Delaware’s size makes it a manageable location to test for a realistic and sustainable program.”

The grant award extends through August 31, 2011. BCCS has subcontracted with Dr. Chrysanthi Leon of the University of Delaware and Joanna Champney, Executive Director of SURJ (Stand up For What’s Right and Just) to assist the coalition with essential research to determine health needs of the prostitute population as well as develop a corresponding Strategic Plan of Action and detailed Implementation Plan. BCCS’s aim is to align criminal justice and social services to identify an innovative health approach that is women-centered, trauma-informed, cost-effective and sustainable.

At the completion of the grant year, the BCCS Prostitution Diversion Project will compete with 16 other award winners for an additional five-year funding grant from the U.S. Office of Women’s Health to implement the program.

Brandywine Counseling & Community Services, Inc. (BCCS) is a community organization that provides holistic care to persons and their families living with addiction, mental health, and HIV-related challenges. BCCS is Delaware's most recognized provider of behavioral services with seven locations statewide. For more information, please contact Basha Silverman at (302) 655-9880, ext. 123, or visit www.brandywinecounseling.org.

Open Letter to the U.S Secretary of State: Release U.S. Funding for Global Harm Reduction

Brandywine Counseling has signed on to the following letter, urging Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to release U.S. funding for international syringe exchange programs before the International AIDS Conference in July.

June 28, 2010

Secretary Hillary Clinton
United States Department of State
2201 C Street NW
Washington, DC 20520

Dear Secretary Clinton,

We are concerned that the State Department has yet to release updated guidance for HIV prevention among injection drug users. Last December, the Office of the Global AIDS Coordinator (OGAC) released a new Five-Year Strategy for the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) that underscored the importance of establishing prevention priorities necessary to combat the epidemic. Around the same time, Congress voted to allow federal funding for syringe exchange programs (SEPs) in the US, underscoring the importance of evidence-based prevention programming. Despite clear statements from the Administration in support of syringe exchange as part of a comprehensive program, without Administration guidance domestic and international programs are still prohibited from using federal funds for one of the most effective HIV prevention tools.

Outside sub-Saharan Africa one third of new HIV infections are due to injection drug use. In countries such as Russia, Ukraine, Georgia, Vietnam and China, more than half of infections are due to injection drug use. By implementing syringe exchange, some countries, like Britain, Australia and France avoided large scale epidemics among people who inject drugs. A review of data from 81 cities across Europe, Asia, and North America with and without SEPs found that, on average, HIV infection increased by 5.9 percent per year in the 52 cities without SEPs and decreased by 5.8 percent per year in the 29 cities with SEPs. This represents an 11 percent net difference in seroprevalence when comparing cities with and without SEPs. Programs could, right now, prevent thousands of new HIV infections at very little cost.

The upcoming International AIDS Conference in Vienna will have a special focus on Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union where injection drug use is the cause of one of the world's fastest growing HIV epidemics. As the single largest donor for HIV/AIDS programs around the world, the United States will be in the spotlight. We urge you to release guidance that embraces syringe exchange in advance of that event.

Sincerely,

ACT UP Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA
After Hours Project, Inc., Brooklyn, NY
Agua Buena Human Rights Association, San Jose, Cost Rica
AIDS Action Baltimore, Baltimore, MD
AIDS Action Council, Washington, DC
AIDS Alliance for Faith and Health, Atlanta, GA
AIDS Care Ocean State, Providence, RI
AIDS Community Research Consortium, Redwood City, CA
AIDS Education Global Information System (www.aegis.org), San Juan Capistrano, CA
AIDS Foundation of Chicago, Chicago, IL.
AIDS Foundation Houston Inc, Houston, TX
AIDS Policy Project, Philadelphia, PA
AIDS Project Greater Danbury, Danbury, CT
AIDS Project Hartford, Inc., Hartford, CT
AIDS Services for the Monadnock Region; The Cleve Jones Wellness House, Gilsum, NH
AIDS Taskforce of Greater Cleveland, Cleveland, OH
AIDS Task Force, Inc., Fort Wayne, IN
AIDS Treatment Activists Coalition, New York, NY
AIDSfreeAFRICA, Ossining, NY
Alaskan AIDS Assistance Association, Anchorage, AK
American Civil Liberties Union, New York, NY and Washington, DC
American Medical Student Association, Reston, VA
American Public Health Association, Washington, DC
amfAR, The Foundation for AIDS Research, New York, NY
Aniz, Inc, Atlanta, GA
Association of Nurses in AIDS Care, Akron, OH
AVAC: Global Advocacy for HIV Prevention, New York, N.Y.
AXIOS Eastern Orthodox LGBT Christian AIDS Ministry, New York, NY
Brandywine Counseling, Inc., Wilmington, Delaware
Brown University AIDS Program, Providence, RI
California Communities United Institute, Citrus Heights, CA
Caring Ambassadors Program, Oregon City, OR
Center for Health and Gender Equity (CHANGE), Washington, DC
Center for Health Justice, Los Angeles, CA
Center for Women Policy Studies, Washington, DC
Centre for Health Policy and Innovation, Johannesburg, South Africa
Chattanooga CARES, Chattanooga, TN
Chicago Recovery Alliance, Chicago, IL
Children With AIDS Project of America, Tempe, AZ
Circles of Fire Productions, Brooklyn, NY
CitiWide Harm Reduction, Bronx, NY
Common Ground – the Westside HIV Community Center, Santa Monica, CA
Community Access National Network (CANN), Washington, DC
Community Health Action of Staten Island, Staten Island, New York
Community Health Awareness Group, Detroit, MI
Community HIV/AIDS Mobilization Project (CHAMP), Providence, RI
Community Information Center, Inc., Portland, OR
DC Community AIDS Network (DC CAN), Washington, DC
Delaware HIV Consortium, Wilmington, DE
Delhi Network of Positive People (DNP+), Delhi, India
Dignity/USA National AIDS Project, Boston, MA
Divine Openarms, Port Harcourt, Nigeria
Downtown Manhattan HCV Support Group, New York, NY
Drug Policy Alliance, New York, NY
Eastern Maine AIDS Network, Bangor, ME
Education for Healthy Choices, Sacramento, CA
EL HAYET des personnes vivant avec le VIH, Paye, Algerie
Elton John AIDS Foundation, New York, NY
Family and Medical Counseling Service, Inc. (FMCS), Washington, DC
Family Services Network of New York, Brooklyn, NY
Fenway Health, Boston, MA
Foundation for Integrative AIDS Research (FIAR), Brooklyn, NY
Frannie Peabody Center, Portland, ME
Gay Men’s Health Crisis, New York, NY
Global AIDS Alliance, Washington, DC
Global Coalition of Women against AIDS, Kampala, Uganda
Global Health Strategies, York, NY
Global Justice Ministry, Metropolitan Community Churches, Metropolitan Community Church of New
York, NY
Grand Rapids Red Project, Grand Rapids, MI
Greater Love Tabernacle-HIV/AIDS Services, Dorchester, MA
Harm Reduction Action Center, Denver, CO
Harm Reduction Coalition, New York, NY
Harm Reduction Institute, Indianapolis, Indiana
Health GAP (Global Access Project), New York, NY
HealthReach Harm Reduction, Augusta, ME
Hep C Connection, Denver CO
Hepatitis Education Project, Seattle, Washington
HIV/AIDS Law Project, Phoenix, AZ
HIV/AIDS Resource Center, Ypsilanti, MI
HIV Education and Prevention Project of Alameda County, Oakland, CA
HIV Medicine Association, Arlington, VA
HIVictorious, Inc., Madison, WI
Housing Works, New York, NY and Washington, DC
Human Rights Watch, New York, NY
IDSA/HIVMA Center for Global Health Policy, Arlington, VA
Indiana Minority Health Coalition; Brothers Uplifting Brothers, Inc., Merrillville, IN
International Community of Women Living with HIV and AIDS-North American Region, Washington,
DC
International AIDS Empowerment, El Paso, TX
International HIV/AIDS Alliance, Washington, DC
International Women’s Health Coalition, New York, NY
Interpharm International Limited, Kenya
Intersect Worldwide, New York, NY
Laramie Reproductive Health, Laramie, WY
Liberty Research Group, Rochester, NY
Life Foundation, Honolulu, HI
LifeLinc of Maryland, Baltimore, MD
Lilitan Research and Consultancy, Accra, Ghana
Lower East Side Harm Reduction Center, New York, NY
MCCNY Charities, New York, NY
Mendocino County AIDS/Viral Hepatitis Network, Ukiah, CA
Mennonite Central Committee U.S. Washington Office, Washington, DC
Metropolitan Community Church Key West, Key West, FL
Michigan Positive Action Coalition, Detroit, MI
Minnesota AIDS Project, Minneapolis, MN
Minority Health Coalition of Marion County, Indianapolis, IN
MOCHA Center, Inc., Buffalo, NY & Rochester, NY
National AIDS Fund, Washington, DC
National Alliance of State and Territorial AIDS Directors, Washington, DC
National Association of Social Workers – USA, Washington, DC
National Forum of People Living HIV/AIDS Networks in Uganda (NAFOPHANU), Kampala Uganda
National Hepatitis C Advocacy Council, Brooklyn, NY
National Viral Hepatitis Roundtable, Decatur, GA
National Youth Advocacy Coalition (NYAC), Washington, DC
Needle Exchange Program of Asheville (NEPA), Asheville, NC
Network of Zambian People Living with HIV/AIDS, Lusaka, Zambia
New Destiny Recovery Ministry, Inc, Baltimore, MD
New York Harm Reduction Educators, Inc., Bronx, NY & New York, NY
North American Old Catholic Church, Washington, DC
North Carolina Harm Reduction Coalition, Winston Salem and Chapel Hill, NC
North Shore Health Project, Gloucester, MA
NYC AIDS Housing Network (NYCAHN), Brooklyn, NY
NYU Medical Center Hepatitis C Support Group, New York, NY
O'Connor Hospital HCV & HBV Support Group, Delhi, NY
Open Society Institute, Washington, DC
Philadelphia Global AIDS Watchdogs (GAWD), Philadelphia, PA
Phoenix Center, Springfield IL
Physicians for Human Rights, Cambridge, MA & Washington, DC
Population Council, New York, NY
Positive Health Project, Inc., New York, NY
Positive Outreach Foundation, Ota, Ogun State, Nigeria
Positive Voice, Athens, Greece
Praxis Housing Initiatives Inc., New York, NY
PreventionWorks, Washington, DC
Project Inform, San Francisco, CA
PSI (Population Services International), Washington, DC
Public Health - Seattle & King County, Seattle, WA
Safe Nepal, Kathmandu, Nepal
SafeGames Project, New York, NY
Salud Latina/Latino Health, Chicago, IL
San Francisco AIDS Foundation, San Francisco, CA
Sexuality Information and Education Council of the U.S. (SIECUS), New York, NY and Washington, DC
Sisters and Brothers Helping Each Other, Kankakee, IL
SLO Bangers Syringe Exchange, San Luis Obispo, CA
Sonoma County Commission on AIDS, Santa Rosa, CA
Sonoma County Hepatitis AIDS Reduction Program (SHARP)/syringe exchange, Santa Rosa (and
surrounding areas), CA
Spokane AIDS Network, Spokane, WA
St. Ann's Corner of Harm Reduction, Bronx, NY
Status C Unknown, Medford, NY
Support on AIDS and Life through Telephone Helpline (SALT) Uganda, Kampala
Tapestry Health, Florence, MA
The AIDS Institute, Washington, DC & Tampa, FL
The Brown Global Health Initiative, Providence, RI
The Center for Prisoner Health and Human Rights, Providence RI
The Foundation for Research on Sexually Transmitted Diseases, Inc (FROST’D), New York, NY
The Global Forum on MSM & HIV (MSMGF), Oakland, CA
The Miriam Immunology Center, Providence, RI
The Space at Tompkins, New York, NY
The Women’s Center, Bronx, NY
Timi Hami Ani Hamro Nepal, Kathmandu, Nepal
Total Health Awareness Team, Rockford, IL
Transexuales y Transgeneros en Marcha (TTM), San Juan, PR
Treatment Action Group, New York, NY
Treatment Education Network, Denver CO
Triangle Health Collective, Durham, NC
Tri-County Health Coalition of Southern Indiana Inc., New Albany, IN
Trust for America’s Health, Washington, DC
2 God B The Glory, Inc Women Supportive Housing Program, Baltimore, MD
25 Messengers, Indonesia
Uganda Integrated Community Based Projects, Kampala, Uganda
UHAP -- Upstate New York Hepatitis Awareness Project, Delancey, New York
Universal Fellowship of Metropolitan Community Churches, Abilene, TX
Urban Coalition for HIV/AIDS Prevention Services (UCHAPS), Washington, DC
Voices Of Community Advocates & Leaders (VOCAL), Brooklyn, NY
Vortex Consulting, LLC, Wenonah, NJ
Washington Heights CORNER Project, New York, NY
Wateree Aids Task Force in Sumter, SC
West County Health Centers, Inc., Guerneville, CA
Women in Motion, Inc., Indianapolis, IN
Youth Empowerment & Human Development Initiative (YEHDI), Kano, Nigeria

CC:
Senator John Kerry, Chair, Foreign Relations Committee
Senator Richard Lugar, Ranking Member, Foreign Relations Committee
Senator Inouye, Chair, Appropriations Committee
Senator Leahy, Chair, State, Foreign Operations Appropriations Subcommittee
Senator Gregg, Ranking Member, State, Foreign Operations Appropriations Subcommittee
Senator Tom Harkin, Chair, Labor, Health and Human Services Appropriations Subcommittee
Senator Richard Durbin, Majority Whip
Representative Nancy Pelosi, Speaker of the House
Representative Howard Berman, Chair, Foreign Affairs Committee
Representative Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, Ranking Member, Foreign Affairs Committee
Representative Waxman, Chair, Energy and Commerce Committee
Representative David Obey, Chair, Appropriations Committee
Representative Nita Lowey, Chair, State, Foreign Operations Appropriations Subcommittee
Representative Kay Granger, Ranking Member, State, Foreign Operations Appropriations Subcommittee
Representative José Serrano, Chair Financial Services Appropriations Subcommittee
Representative Donald Payne, Chair, Foreign Affairs Africa and Global Health
Representative Michael Castle
Representative Elijah Cummings
Representative Jesse Jackson, Jr.
Representative Barbara Lee
Representative Lucille Roybal-Allard
Ambassador Eric Goosby, Global AIDS Coordinator

Write Your State Legislator: Maintain Funding to BCI

BCI clients, family members, and friends, you can help ensure that Delaware will continue to fund services for people served by behavioral health agencies. Here is a sample letter you can personalize and send to your State Representative or Senator.

We know the State of Delaware is facing a huge budget deficit for next year. If we make our voices heard, we may prevent a possible reduction or elimination of services for addicted persons and their families. If BCI has saved your life or the life of a loved one, please tell your story!

If you don't know who your legislators are, you can call the numbers listed here.

Your voice matters. Write today and give people affected by addiction hope for the future. Thank you!

Sharing Our "Light" with the Senate

The Lighthouse Program had a visit from Senator Tom Carper and several district & state representatives earlier this month. The Senator and the representatives were given a tour of the facility. Senator Carper engaged our residents in conversation surrounding several things, such as the admission process, the treatment schedule and topics, their growth process and their plans after program completion. The ladies, as well as staff, were afforded the opportunity to take pictures with the Senator - that made their day!

Advocating for Recovery at Legislative Hall

Delaware's Joint Finance Committee is holding its annual hearing this week on Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services, in preparation for making difficult decisions for this year's State budget. BCI Counselor Silver Debrick is testifying today to bring to their attention the needs of Delaware's citizens regarding treatment and recovery. Here is what she had to say.

Good afternoon and thank you for allowing me to speak on behalf of addiction services in Delaware. I am Silver Debrick, and I am a Dual Disorder Counselor of Brandywine Counseling, Inc., an addiction, mental health treatment and prevention agency celebrating 25 years of service to addicted persons and their families in the State of Delaware. I would like to thank you for your support in the past and to remind you why funding for these services remains essential.

Brandywine Counseling offers “Same Day Intake” for heroin addiction. We provide a patient their first dose of potentially life-saving methadone treatment the same day they walk in the door, with no wait time or waiting list. Many people have admitted that same day medication enabled them to stick with treatment rather than be back on the streets seeking heroin. Today, 40% of our methadone patients, nearly 450 people, have at least 90 days abstinence. We do not turn anyone away who needs our services.

Brandywine partners with other Delaware service providers, including Christiana Care, Detoxification, and community-based peer support. We strive for consistency, efficiency, and nonduplication of efforts to serve our common population. One successful collaboration is our on-site outreach at Wilmington Hospital, which has enabled us to reach a population that was previously “falling through the cracks.” In just over a year, 114 people have entered treatment thanks to this partnership. Drug use is known to increase one’s risk of chronic disease, including heart disease, cancer, or kidney damage. By helping these people enter treatment earlier, we help them avoid these health problems, while decreasing costs to hospitals and taxpayers.

Brandywine also continues to partner with the State of Delaware to better serve Delawareans with co-occurring substance abuse and mental illness. Co-occurring disorders are becoming more the rule than the exception for drug-dependent people. Nearly 4 in 10 people who come through our door have a Co-Occurring Disorder. Our team is prepared to provide them individualized, person-centered, culturally competent assessment and treatment, with minimal wait time. This includes our clinical staff, many of whom have obtained our Co-Occurring Professional Certification; as well as our physicians, psychologists, and psychiatrist Dr. Carol Tavani.

Another vulnerable population Brandywine serves is women with children. Our residential program, the Lighthouse, is filled to its 10 bed capacity. We have 2 moms who have been awarded regular visitation with their children, and another mom who has regained custody of her children while at the Lighthouse. The Lighthouse is keeping these families together. It helps women find the courage to break the generational cycle of addiction and transform their lives to become productive citizens and good mothers. That is why we welcome them upon arrival with a big hug and a smile and say "Welcome to the Light!"

Treatment produces so many individual success stories. We help each person set goals, work toward them, and celebrate when they reach them. Here are just a few examples.

• One gentleman from Georgetown entered our vocational program. He just got employed with a cellphone company. When he came in to see his counselor, he was in a suit and tie and was beaming with pride!
  
  
• Another young lady named Dawn was living on the streets in Wilmington one year ago. She was addicted to heroin and was sleeping on a bus stop bench in the middle of winter. Today, she has one year clean, she has a place to live, and she is the mom of healthy 9 month old twins.
  
  
• A young man named Kevin took part in our recovery coaching program. He received peer support that helped him build a strong support network, stay clean, and reconnect with his family. He says, “I feel like a productive member of society today. I feel like a normal human being. Most of all, I have my family back today, and just 8 months ago, they wouldn’t even want me in their house.”

Lastly, I would like to remind you that when we treat and prevent addiction, we reduce the consequences of addiction, which often receive much more attention. Addiction is the leading factor in 40% of homelessness, 38% of child abuse and neglect, 50% of domestic violence disputes, 50% of auto accidents and 62% of aggravated assaults. If we as a society recognize addiction as the underlying cause of these concerns, we will see how necessary treatment and prevention are. I ask that you continue to support addiction treatment and prevention services.

Thank you.

House Speaker Gilligan Sends Personal Thank You for Client's Letter

Delaware Speaker of the House Robert F. Gilligan sent this personal response to one of our clients who took part in our letter-writing campaign. It says in part, "While I cannot make any promises about state funding at this point, I will work my hardest to ensure that our decisions do not substantially impact the services on which people battling addiction depend."

We are so thrilled that funding was preserved for addiction services, but it's even more wonderful to know our elected officials hear our voice. Our staff who testified before the Joint Finance Committee were also told directly by members that they had read this article we sent them. So once again, proof that our advocacy made a difference.

We Did It!

Delaware passed the FY10 budget early this morning with no cuts in program contracts to disability providers. We are so excited! It seemed inevitable there would be cuts this year that would force us to reduce services. But with your help, we wrote to the legislators and spoke with them directly about the value of addiction treatment. They heard us!

As we celebrate this victory, we want to say thanks to all of you who wrote letters and shared your stories. We want to thank DelARF for their work on our behalf. And we want to thank the officials and legislators, particularly the Joint Finance Committee, for their support.

Though we won this battle, we’ll continue to need your support in the future, so stay tuned to brandwinecounseling.org to see what you can do and when you can do it. Thank you again for making a difference!

Today is National Call-In Day to Include Addiction in Health Care Reform

National Addiction Health Care Reform Call-in Day: Make sure every health care reform bill includes addiction services. Take Action!

Call your members of Congress on TODAY, Wednesday, June 17, to tell them to make sure addiction prevention, treatment and recovery-support are included in Health Care Reform!

Today, June 17, the addiction prevention, treatment and recovery communities, along with allies from the mental health community, are hosting a Call-In Day to make sure that health care responses to addiction and mental health conditions are part of any national health care reform proposal considered by Congress. Call your members of Congress, and make sure our voice is heard loud and clear on Capitol Hill!

Background: Members of Congress and the Obama Administration are hard at work on proposals to reform the nation's health care system. Some drafts and proposals have already been released, and others will be released in the next few days. These bills will be reviewed, amended and (if all goes according to plan) voted on before Congress leaves Washington for its August recess. For more information about these health care reform proposals and NAADAC's responses to them, please visit www.naadac.org/advocacy.

So far, all of the draft healthcare bills or proposals include some mention of addiction and mental health. However, the serious discussions are just getting underway and strong advocacy will be needed to make sure that the full continuum of addiction and mental health services are included and will be available for people seeking recovery, just like any other health condition.

Click "Take Action" and then enter your zip code to get the names and phone numbers of your members of Congress.

Please join others from across the country to flood Capitol Hill with calls about the importance of including addiction and mental health services in health care reform!

This message was sent by the NAADAC-NAATP Government Relations Department, 1001 N. Fairfax St., Ste. 201, Alexandria, VA 22314 Ph: 800.548.0497 x129

It's Not Too Late to Write Your Legislator

We're still awaiting the 2010 budget for the State of Delaware, and what it will mean for BCI's services. Cuts will be coming, how much is still yet to be determined. Many of our staff are taking time out of our schedule to meet with legislators and advocate as much as we can. We need your help!

If you believe addiction services are important, there's still time to make your voice heard. Use our sample letter to send to your State Representative or Senator. It takes hardly any time at all. When I sent mine, I even got a response back. If you don't know who your legislators are, you can call the numbers listed here. Thank you for your support!

Write Your State Legislator: Maintain Funding to BCI

BCI clients, family members, and friends, you can help ensure that Delaware will continue to fund services for people served by behavioral health agencies. Here is a sample letter you can personalize and send to your State Representative or Senator.

We know the State of Delaware is facing a huge budget deficit for next year. If we make our voices heard, we may prevent a possible reduction or elimination of services for addicted persons and their families. If BCI has saved your life or the life of a loved one, please tell your story!

If you don't know who your legislators are, you can call the numbers listed here.

Your voice matters. Write today and give people affected by addiction hope for the future. Thank you!