Georgia County Government - October 2008 - (Page 46) UNION COUNTY continued from page 45 grant was successful in this respect, too – word-of-mouth from the public awareness campaign has also been very powerful. Without the grant and the Coalition, we’d never have been able to promote this level of public awareness or provide affordable treatment. We’ve broken the drug’s obscurity, taken it out of hiding and shown people what it really is, what it really does.” In particular, local churches offer support for New Hope with Alcoholics Anonymous programs, Narcotics Anonymous programs, and church services that encourage a more accountable way of life, which includes spiritual components. People are addicts for their entire lives, Beaver points out. “Addiction is a lifelong problem, and it cuts across all socioeconomic classes. A drug like meth takes people away from a spiritual life, which gives the churches a role. They can help people ‘change their playmates and their playground,’ which are crucial to recovery from addiction. You have to get people out of the drug and alcohol culture.” Another consideration is that the program at New Hope in Blairsville is not considered “transient.” It treats community residents on an ongoing basis – encouraging six-month follow-ups and interviews. “We even offered people a $20 stipend to come in for their sixmonth follow-ups,” Beaver says. “This is one threat we face with the loss of the grant funding, it will be harder to identify those who lapse.” Currently, New Hope has the same number of clients coming in, in sync with the seasonal schedule of the courts, Beaver notes. Waters-Rose continues to develop evidence-based curriculum material, and assist with effective curriculum development, using what is known in the business as the Matrix Model. Data are continually collected presently and forwarded to the University of Miami for inclusion in their data analysis. Everyone’s hope is for New Hope’s continued, phenomenal rate of success. This rare initiative has virtually saved lives, and more initiatives like it could help save the state’s future – lowering the costs to criminal justice, to the workforce, to families, and to individual lives. “We’re proud of what we’ve done, and we hope we can keep this initiative active,” Paris asserts. It’s certain he, the New Hope staff, and the whole community will do everything possible to create a self-supporting treatment center here. Hopefully, its benefits are sure to continue to be nothing short of extraordinary. ■ The Future Waters-Rose concurs: “The grant allowed funding of the facility, paid for overhead and startup, and now has left us with a fully operational center run by a community-wide board that has the means to treat many types of addiction.” The center at this point in time has branched into treatment for a wide range of substance abuse problems, and into a Family Violence Intervention Program as well. “Frequently, family violence involves the influence of alcohol and/or drugs,” Waters-Rose asserts. “We’re trying to help families, and get the faith community involved as well,” Beaver notes. John R. Graham Chairman | Richard Burley, Jr. District 1 Terry M. Johnson District 2 | Scott Kelly County Attorney Pamela H. Lester County Clerk | Cathy Toulson Finance Clerk r k Judge Jani Thigpen Probate Court | Lynette Johnson Tax Commissioner nice aC t n Joe Peebles Sheriff Joe Peebles Sheriff | Judge S.D. Pearson Magistrate Court udge D Shirley Cheeley Clerk of Court | Paul Lo Coroner l eley Clerk Court t Paul Lowe Board of Commissioners P.O. Box 46 521 Main Street Warrenton, Georgia 30828 706 465-2171 Fax: 706 465-1300 E-mail: warrencoboc@classicsouth.net 46 334679_WarrenComission.indd 1 GEORGIA COUNTY GOVERNMENT 6/15/07 3:40:17 PM
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