Cassandra Sheets

Utica, New York (January 2022) – Center for Family Life and Recovery, Inc. is seeking nominations for 2022 Amethyst Awards. The Amethyst Award is given to a member of our community who has helped others by inspiring them with the message of hope and recovery in the fields of mental health and chemical dependency, as well as treatment and prevention. The Amethyst Award was inspired by the Amethyst stone where the purplish and reddish colors have represented the chastening and purifying effects of suffering. The Amethyst stone has become a symbol of recovery. Anyone in the community can be awarded the Amethyst Award.

Nominations can be submitted on CFLR, Inc.’s website, HERE. Nominations will be accepted through February 28, 2022.  The Amethyst Award will be presented at Center for Family Life and Recovery’s 2022 April Awareness Breakfast, “Celebrating CommUNITY Connections,” to be held on April 26th at Hart’s Hill Inn, in Whitesboro.  Ticket information is available on CFLR’s website and by calling the office.

Center for Family Life and Recovery, Inc. is proud to be a leader in creating a world where people have the power to achieve and celebrate recovery. CFLR supports individuals and families struggling with addiction, mental health, and behavioral issues by inspiring hope, providing help, promoting wellness, and transforming lives.

Utica, New York – The Prevention department of Center for Family Life and Recovery (CFLR) is looking for volunteers for the Compeer Program. The Compeer Program is an international organization that focuses on helping those who are struggling with mental health disorders through the power of friendship and has been offered locally by CFLR for the past 7 years. The program matches both youth and adults with a mental health diagnosis in Oneida and Herkimer counties with caring volunteers who want to help make a positive impact on someone’s life. Serving the Mohawk Valley since the mid-1980s, Compeer continues to be a positive influence on our communities.

The Compeer Program at CFLR has a mission: Promoting good mental health through meaningful friendships. “Friendship is powerful medicine, be a lifeline for someone who is struggling with their mental health today,” says Ashley Miller, Family Peer Advocate with CFLR, who helps to oversee Compeer at CFLR. Also overseeing this program is Francesca Esposito as a Prevention Service Coordinator since early 2021. She says about the program, “Human relationships foster positive and proactive mental health and wellbeing. Our Compeer Program facilitates these lasting and meaningful relationships through friendship. The impact of even the simplest social interaction can have a lasting benefit on individuals in need.”

For Compeer to be as fun and efficient as possible, amazing volunteers are needed. Volunteers are asked to meet a few basic requirements; be over 18 years of age, be able to pass a background check, attend orientation training, and can devote at least four hours each month to their new friend.

Mentoring opportunities include:

• 1:1 Youth Friendship: Volunteer is matched with a youth in a 1:1 supportive friendship
• 1:1 Adult Friendship: Volunteer is matched with an adult in a 1:1 supportive friendship
• E-Buddies: Volunteers communicate with match or individual via email/text/phone calls/video calls/social media

If volunteering interests you, reach out to Ashley Miller at (315) 768-2678 or amiller@clfrinc.org Or, visit the CFLR website at https://www.whenthereshelpthereshope.com/services/prevention-services/share-your-story/

CFLR’s goal is to inspire hope, provide help, promote wellness and transform lives as well as support individuals and families struggling with addiction, mental health, and behavioral issues. The vision of CFLR is to be a leader in creating a world where people have the power to achieve and celebrate recovery. To learn more, visit www.whenthereshelpthereshope.com or call (315) 733-1709

Out of Darkness Walk brought to the Mohawk Valley

Utica, NY- October 3, 2021− The annual Mohawk Valley Out of the Darkness Community Walk, hosted by the Greater Central New York Chapter and the Center for Family Life and Recovery will be held at the MVCC campus in Utica on October 3 from 9:30 am -12:00 pm. This walk supports the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention’s education and support programs and its bold goal to reduce the annual U.S. rate of suicide 20 percent by the year 2025.

Proud supporters include the Center for Family Life and Recovery, Hero’s for Hope, Callanan Industries and Partners for Prevention sponsor Helio Health to bring the Out of Darkness walk to the Mohawk Valley.

“Suicide touches one in five American families. We hope that by walking we will draw attention to this issue and keep other families from experiencing a suicide loss. Our goal is to save lives and bring hope to those affected by suicide,” said Karen Heisig, the event co-chair and Associate Area Director for the Chapter.

The Mohawk Valley Out of the Darkness Community Walk is one of more than 550 Out of the Darkness Overnight, Community and Campus Walks being held nationwide this year. The walks are expected to unite more than 300,000 walkers and raise millions for suicide prevention efforts. Last year, these walks raised over $21 million for suicide prevention.

“These walks are about turning hope into action,” said AFSP CEO Robert Gebbia. “The research has shown us how to fight suicide, and if we keep up the fight, the science is only going to get better and our culture will get smarter about mental health. With the efforts of our courageous volunteers, and a real investment from our nation’s leaders, we hope to significantly reduce the suicide rate in the United States.”

The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention is dedicated to saving lives and bringing hope to those affected by suicide. AFSP creates a culture that’s smart about mental health through education and community programs, develops suicide prevention through research and advocacy, and provides support for those affected by suicide. Led by CEO Robert Gebbia and headquartered in New York, and with a public policy office in Washington, D.C., AFSP has local chapters in all 50 states with programs and events nationwide. Learn more about AFSP in its latest Annual Report, and join the conversation on suicide prevention by following AFSP on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube.

Utica , New York  – Center for Family Life and Recovery, Inc (“CFLR) has received a $19k charitable grant through the Mele Family Fund, a donor-advised fund at the Community Foundation of Herkimer and Oneida Counties.

According to Jodi Warren, Director of Prevention Services at CFLR, the funds will be used to help these school districts become accredited in providing support in grief and loss, anger management, and group support for children and youths. The grant will also help fund the current curriculum, which is crucial for today’s school children who are dealing with mental health issues, including the loss of loved ones due to COVID or other illness, divorce/separation, and overdose or suicide.

“By bringing this kind of accreditation to our prevention department, it enhances what we do by helping support protective factors and decreases the potential of risky behaviors or further types of traumas,” says Warren. “Now more than ever with what our children and families continually have to endure, programming such as this is vital to their well-being.”

Since 1952, The Community Foundation has invested millions of dollars into Oneida and Herkimer counties. The Foundation partners with various nonprofits in order to make impactful investments in core areas of need, including economic development, education, arts and culture and health.

Along with supporting individuals and families struggling with addiction, mental health and behavioral issues, CFLR’s goal is to inspire hope, provide help, promote wellness and transform lives. The vision of CFLR is to be a leader in creating a world where people have the power to achieve and celebrate recovery.

To learn more, visit www.whenthereshelpthereshope.com or call (315) 733-1709.

Utica, New York  – Center for Family Life and Recovery is now certified as an Opioid Overdose Prevention Program. The certification by the New York State Department of Health enables Center for Family Life & Recovery to routinely dispense naloxone based on best practices, including overdose prevention training of patients and community members. Certified Opioid Overdose Prevention Programs are part of New Yorkers overcoming substance misuse.

“Increasing naloxone availability saves lives,” said Jodi Warren, Director of Prevention Services at Center for Family Life & Recovery. “Making naloxone easily accessible to our community, who may have friends or family struggling with opioid use, is an important part of New York’s  response to the opioid epidemic.”

More than 93,000 people died of a drug overdose in the U.S. last year — a record number that reflects a rise of nearly 30% from 2019, according to new data released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Officials said the increase was driven by the lethal prevalence of fentanyl as well as pandemic-related stressors and problems in accessing care.

256 People die each day from a drug overdose in the United States. Naloxone (Narcan) is the only lifesaving tool to help someone who is overdosing. Substance Use Disorder or abuse has no discrimination and can affect anyone. Overdose can also happen to anyone; fentanyl can be laced in any drug and is undetectable to the naked eye. Overdose can also happen in other ways than fentanyl and heroin, it can happen from taking to much medication, or by mixing it with another medication or alcohol, it can also happen by ingestion, by touch, it can occur by stepping on a needle laying in the grass or by picking up a bottle that has been used to get high.

Overdose can happen to ANYONE and even pets.

In Oneida county alone, we have over 220 reported overdoses, 39 of those have been reported fatal, 44% of those fatalities were not administered Narcan. These overdoses are what has been reported, which is concerning and devastating alone, but to know their “real” numbers would be further astonishing. Center for Family Life and Recovery, CFLR, is committed to prevention, recovery, and providing hope, healing, education, and awareness, one life lost to overdose is one life to many.

New York State has been a national leader in the response to the opioid crisis, and overdose prevention and awareness efforts date back to 1992 when the first syringe exchange program was authorized by the Department of Health. Since then, New York State has taken a people-centered approach in addressing the comprehensive needs of those who use drugs. The State’s naloxone initiative, launched in 2006, has supported over 25,500 naloxone administrations, with more than 14,000 carried out by community responders to date.

The Department provides overdose supplies, including naloxone, to registered programs. Community responders trained by these programs administered naloxone nearly 2,000 times in 2020. Over the last several years, New York State has worked to increase access to naloxone by having pharmacy standing orders in place for this medication.

Center for Family Life and Recovery, Inc. is proud to be the area’s leading expert for advocacy, prevention, counseling, and training. As a community partner, it is important to us that we continue spreading the message of help and hope to our area and with those whom we work.

Along with supporting individuals and families struggling with addiction, mental health and behavioral issues, CFLR’s goal is to inspire hope, provide help, promote wellness and transform lives. The vision of CFLR is to be a leader in creating a world where people have the power to achieve and celebrate recovery. To learn more, visit www.whenthereshelpthereshope.com or call (315) 733-1709 and ask for Fran Esposito or Katie Burns.