| Rockland schools for substance abuse counselors merge
Two Rockland schools that train students to become credentialed alcohol and substance abuse counselors have merged. The CASAC School of the Rockland Council on Alcoholism and other Drug Dependence and the Addiction Counselors Training Program of Rockland County will now operate as the Rockland Chemical Dependency Studies Institute out of the new Haverstraw Center in Haverstraw. "We've had two competing agencies that are now bringing together the finest leaders and instructors in the field under one roof," said Debbie Maidman, operations manager of the new school. "They are coming together with the same mission, the same focus." Accredited counselors who graduate from the school work in outpatient and inpatient treatment centers, the criminal justice system, schools, department of social services and department of transportation evaluations, rehab and halfway houses.
Fighting addiction is a struggle at any price
High-profile alcohol and drug rehabilitation centers seem like a home away from home for Hollywood celebs like Lindsay Lohan, Nicole Richie and Robert Downey Jr. Some charge nearly $50,000 a month. But since Lohan's arrest last week on charges of driving under the influence and possession of cocaine -- after several in-and-out stays at pricey rehab clinics -- one wonders what, if anything, works. Headlines about backsliding celebrities should not lead people to believe rehabilitation clinics are not worthwhile. However luxurious -- or Spartan -- the surroundings, however famous or workaday the patient, it's not unusual for people fighting addictions to fail often before they may finally succeed, say doctors and those who run rehab clinics.
Group home for teens planned for Soudan
An organization that specializes in providing residential services to adolescents recovering from alcohol and drug addiction is looking to purchase the old Parkside Homes building in Soudan. Phoenix Group Homes currently operates three half way houses in the state and hopes to bring their fourth to this area. They are licensed through the Minnesota Department of Corrections as a group foster home and have been operating for 14 years. Weve been getting a number of referrals from the upper third of the state, and decided that we should look north. The property were looking at there in Soudan is perfect for what we would need, said Executive Director of Phoenix Group Homes, Howard Meier. Phoenix offers a variety of services to youth ages 14-19. The main concentration of the group is to provide a constructive transitionary period for individuals coming out of treatment facilities.
Woman pleads guilty to purse thefts
A 23-year-old woman pleaded guilty in Circuit Court yesterday to stealing purses at churches in Makiki and Manoa earlier this year. Kellyn Cabral pleaded guilty to second-degree robbery, two counts of second-degree burglary and second-degree theft in connection with incidents at Makiki Christian Church, St. Pius X Church and St. Francis School. She faces up to 10 years in prison. Circuit Judge Richard Pollack granted Cabral supervised release on the condition that she heads directly to the Salvation Army Addiction Treatment Services from Oahu Community Correctional Center for drug treatment. ATS is a residential program in Nuuanu where Cabral is required to undergo drug treatment for a minimum of nine months. She needs the help that ATS can provide for her, said her attorney, Myles Breiner, outside the courtroom.
Doctors exploit addicts to milk OHIP: Task force
Ontario needs to crack down on doctors who have turned drug addiction therapy into a money-making venture, a provincial report obtained by the Star says. Among the findings: Some doctors are ordering far too many expensive drug tests, while in other cases narcotic painkillers are being over-prescribed, leading to addiction. The report of the Methadone Task Force, created in response to a Star investigation, will be officially released today. Methadone is a synthetic narcotic used daily by about 16,000 Ontario drug addicts to reduce cravings for heroin and other narcotics. The task force report says methadone is a valuable tool to cure addictions but found problems with how the provincial methadone program is being administered and policed.
8/4 Church news
Angel of Joy Lutheran - ELCA. Sunday events. 10:15 a.m. Sundays; Upcoming events. Aug. 5. The Mission and Outreach Committees 3rd Quarter project will be to send a team from our congregation to Port Arthur to lend a hand to the Port Arthur Recovery from Hurricanes Rita and Katrina on August 10-12. Funds raised for this project will be matched by Thrivent Financial for Lutherans for Lutheran Social Services Disaster Response - Port Arthur Project. My Brother's Keeper quilting ministry meets on Mondays at 7 p.m. to "tie" quilts for the homeless. Deadline for signing up for the adult Bible class, Contemporary Literature and the Life of Faith is August 10. 4003 Daniel McCall Drive, Lufkin, 936-632-4777. ——— .
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