I have been a resident of Fall River all of my life. I love this city and all that it has to offer. It has given me many opportunities to succeed and now I believe it is my turn to give back.
When I was 15 years old I became a peer leader for the BOLD Coalition, a section of Stanley Street Treatment and Resources, SSTAR, that focuses on youth prevention regarding alcohol and other substances. Becoming a peer leader was one of the most eye opening and life changing events in my life and made me realize that working with people was my passion. At 20 years old, I am currently a social work student at Bridgewater State University and will be graduating in the spring of 2020 with my bachelor's in social work.
Considering that SSTAR was the place that motivated me to get to where I am today, I will certainly be defending the proposal to build a new treatment center at 75 Weaver St. in Fall River.
The opioid epidemic is sweeping the nation at astonishing rates, and Fall River is not exempt from it. It is estimated that between 26.4 million and 36 million people abuse opioids worldwide with an estimated 2.1 million people in the United States suffering from addiction to prescription opioid pain relievers and 467,000 of those people being addicted to heroin, with those numbers estimated to grow.
With 90,000 residents in Fall River and only 20 detox beds at the SSTAR facility, it is certainly not enough. There are people out there who are sick and want and need help. In its current state SSTAR simply does not have the capacity to help every single person that walks through the doors asking for treatment. However, if another SSTAR facility were to open, more people could and would have access to the help they want and need.
I fully support a new SSTAR facility and wish others would feel the same. I have lost friends and family members to this horrible disease and intend on doing my part to help in any way I can.
Addiction grabs a hold of a person and doesn’t let go. Nobody wakes up and decides to become an addict. Facilities like SSTAR can help lead the way to recovery and with the number of people with substance use disorder growing we must respond to the need in the city.
To the residents of Fall River, I encourage you to put your biases aside and realize that there are people out there who need help. Addiction is a disease and is one that we cannot ignore any longer. This is a public health issue that needs to be addressed. Why should people with substance use disorder be treated any differently than anyone else who gets sick and needs help?
We need access to resources in order to care for these people, and I fully believe that opening the new SSTAR resource center in Fall River is a step in the right direction.
Alyssa Jusseaume
Fall River