My addiction and dependency has taken over every part of my life of any real importance. It has kept me from being a caring, loving father able to provide support and guidance to the children I love and care for deeply. It has all but destroyed my heart knowing that I have hurt my parents for failing to be the son they once where so proud of , from being an companion that was once loved and admired as a responsible partner in making life’s choices, as a new grandfather who has not been able to pass on my knowledge of life’s lessons I have learned along my journey down wrong roads and the paths I’ve chosen to make it to my destination of happiness and wellbeing through the guidance and resources I’ve found in the recovery community. It has also taken away my ability and standing as a productive part of society and a respected figure in my community.

It was hard for me to reach out and seek help for my addiction. I had nowhere to turn, thankfully the court realized I had a dependency and needed treatment. Court Support Services, realizing I was in need of help referred me to a treatment facility, the Cheney House in Hartford, which has helped tremendously in my treatment. The substance abuse counselor David Gossman, has educated me in Intensive substance abuse groups, issue groups, relapse prevention, relaxation groups and life skills. He has provided a safe and secure atmosphere built on trust and confidentiality and a genuine understanding of his clients helping them to open up and address issues in their lives which have led to their dependency and addiction problems.

I also have to give much thanks and appreciation to the Hartford chapter of C.C.A.R, Laurie Fresher, Cherlye Pacapelli and Helena Krawczynski have been such a godsend, providing support groups, educational programs ,such as the “faces and voices”, “community education series”, ”Telephone Recovery Support Training”, ”Volunteer Orientation Training”, and a source of so many resources it is hard to name them all. They have given me a chance to regain my self esteem, and provided me with a choice to live the recovery life style. They have taught me about commitments and how to keep them to better my self and others, by putting a positive face on recovery and letting my voice be heard through my story of addiction and my life as a person in recovery and to treat others with dignity and respect.

It is just so great to know that there are people who care about recovery and their dedication to the community as a whole. I have much to accomplish in a short period of time and through advocacy and education I have became more involved with what C.C.A.R represents and I have become a positive person once again.

Without these programs and services people with addiction and dependency issues have no where to turn, It is my belief that if we, as a society, had the ability to step in and save a life by giving them the level of care as we would give to anyone else afflicted by a disease that is detrimental to their health and to those that may be affected by their behavior or say “ actions” in the community , why are we not getting them the proper care and treatment that is out there. By assessing and identifying ones needs and determining if substance abuse treatment or other forms of treatment such as mental heath treatment would be beneficial , that individual may regain the respect and admiration of their loved ones and peers, so they have the opportunity to become once again a conscientious, productive, positive asset to the community and to society. Rehabilitation not incarceration is the key to saving lives, saving tax payers money and stopping the cycle of criminal behavior. There is such a need for alternatives to incarceration especially those plagued with mental heath and addiction issues. With all the talk nowadays about prison over crowding, lack of staffing in the corrections field, and the money it would cost to build and staff those facilities it makes more sense to start funding and allocating money to programs that have been proven to break the cycle of addiction and criminal behavior.

If this theory of “rehabilitation” a word that has been left out of al these talks of late, is to work it has to start in the court room, with the proper assessment of each case and that individuals behavior and the cause of that behavior, down to proper placement of that individual in to the appropriate program which meets their needs and would benefit them in the best possible way. Once placement to a program is deemed necessary and found to be beneficial to that individual and their community, it comes down to case management. Case management should start with implementation of a “treatment Program” to be followed and monitored by case manager, it may also need to be modified to benefit that client’s special needs. Discharge planning should start from day one! With the utilization of outside resources’ such as C.C.A.R, faith based organizations , sober house’s , and the plethora of other organizations that are abundant in the community we can over come this vicious cycle of addiction and criminal behavior. With adding Job Training Courses and Affordable housing programs, which are a major cause of recidivism; to the list, we can also hope to envision a world of people living a happy and healthy recovery life style.

So I thank you in advance for your support and hope that you would consider rallying for the funding and grants that these programs need to keep delivering the outstanding support and caring for the individuals whom suffer from these tragic and life threatening diseases and to the community they help provide vital services and education to. Take it from me, a person in recovery, we need these programs to better our society and rebuild our communities .The vision of C.C.A.R says it all “We envision a world where the power, hope, and healing of recovery from drug and alcohol addiction is thoroughly understood and embraced.” Once again thank you for caring about this cause, to treat and educate our communities about the detrimental effect addiction has on our society, and or moral and ethical obligation to provide the level of care and support recovery programs need so desperately.

Thank You for your time and support.

John Demorest Jr.

(Cheney House client and House Rep.)

Demorestjohn@gmail.com

Close to 300 people attended - standing room only. Hartford Senior Peer Services Coordinator Laurie Fresher did an outstanding job of organizing this event. The back conference room had an incredible spread of food. The Center looks amazing. Staff gave tour after tour after tour of all three floors. Four people from PRO-ACT attended, mentioned because they drove up from Philadelphia! The program went off without a hitch. Thanks to CCAR Board Vice President Bill Leary and CCAR Board Secretary Roberto Garcia for speaking (see below for Mr.Garcia's speech). DMHAS Deputy Commissioner Peter Rockholz also attended and spoke. Longtime CCAR member Manny Quinones, one of our contractors who worked on the Center spoke and at the end of his talk, he surprised the crowd and and gave his resume to Bill to be considered for the Board. Gerry Lafleur, producer of the Capitol Voices of Recovery and a family member shared his story and expressed his endorsement. Executive Director Phillip Valentine gave an Overview and Director of Operations Cheryle Pacapelli thanked all the supporters of the HRCC.

CCAR Board Secretary Roberto Garcia's Talk at the Open House of the Hartford Recovery Community Center 01-25-07:

On behalf of the board of directors of CCAR I want to say hello to all of you and congratulate your being here to participate in this momentous occasion. I also appreciate being given the opportunity to address you with my thoughts. The goals of my talk today are twofold:

1) maximize the advantages of long term recovery, and

2) maximize and enhance early addiction recovery and restoration.

I open my remarks with a warning, prediction, and a challenge: Until we stop viewing addicted individuals as maleficent thieves who steal from the cornucopia of forbidden pleasures, which by the way, is the way current society with its some what psychological/superstitious paradigm of addiction suggests it is, we will continue to harvest mistaken beliefs, myths and biases. Only by forsaking our own similarly biased beliefs based on misperceived, antiquated, and generalized empirical judgments about addicts and accepting the reality of a new paradigm, the paradigm of a neurobiological and emotionally neutral basis of addiction, will total recovery from addiction exist.

People who are concerned with public safety and persons with addictions and mental health issues would both benefit. As it stands right now, public safety, instead of being assured by current beliefs and policies, is being severely diminished for the ever present luxuries of moralism, revenge and punishment of the addict is the rule of thumb, a delusion of control by society, politicians and their policies, authoritarian physicians and licensing administrations. In fact, until we provide a safe and accepting environment where most addicted persons can routinely and fearlessly refer themselves for recovery and monitor their own progress, unnecessary damage of the person with addictions and mental health issues will be magnified and perpetuated by the same policies designed to prevent them. The damage from addiction and mental health issues are enhanced more by the current policies that are meant to correct the problems of addiction and mental health, than by the problem itself.

Early voluntary recovery is the only true method to curb and prevent the damage caused by the punitive policies that face addicts today. This can only be accomplished through fear-free self-referral in a public atmosphere. As a representative of persons in recovery, CCAR is in a unique position and has the opportunity to ensure the system changes. I predict that if CCAR courageously continues to advocate for the changes it knows are correct, the best results will follow. I challenge people in recovery, friends, allies and family members of people in recovery to take action and help by putting a face on recovery despite the obvious fear of retaliation. The issue of what it means to be an "addict" needs to be publicly and factually defined and recovery from addiction and or mental illness needs to be supported. So again congratulations on this beautiful Recovery Center and let's continue "putting a face on recovery".