The Center for Family Services is offering free help to anyone in need of it
By KRYSTAL NURSE
The Sun
As the nation and the state are dealing with the opioid addiction crisis, a support group has launched on Delsea Drive to allow families to seek anonymous help for their loved ones battling addiction.
On every second and fourth Wednesdays, people from all over meet at Bethel United Methodist Church (481 Delsea Drive, Sewell) with the Center for Family Services’ ReConnections Addiction Support group.
Heather Thomas, program coordinator at ReConnections, said she was contacted by the Rev. Carol Davies, who explained there was a need in the community for a group that wasn’t a typical 12-step program, commonly seen at various medical centers and health agencies.
“They [attendees] talk about any type of concerns they’re hearing about, from their family or even the community, such as medically assisted treatment, paths to treatment and anything that’s information on recovering from drug addiction,” said Thomas.
People are welcome to stop by any meeting, and it’s free.
Those in attendance will be met by employees from ReConnections who are trained on mental health and drug addiction.
The new group, Thomas emphasized, allows members to have full anonymity when seeking resources and provides them with tools on helping loved ones, such as how to approach the topic of addiction.
ReConnections, she added, offers free, intimate, individual sessions, such as Narcan training, and connecting with other local support groups.
“We’ve had a couple of success stories where a family has gotten a loved one to treatment and recovery,” said Thomas. She further added while some loved ones are still in the process of getting to recovery and treatment, the families have improved their lifestyles with healthy coping mechanisms and learning how to repair and stabilize relationships.
“This type of program was put here for a reason,” said Thomas. “It’s a program that is tiered to their specific needs, and they’ll get the support through this.”
Families seeking more information can call or text (609) 781–6389, or send an email to [email protected].
