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WILKES-BARRE — The South Wilkes-Barre Residents’ Association hosted the Drug Abuse and Opioid Awareness forum on Wednesday night at the Innovation Center.
This event was the second of its kind, according to Luzerne County Councilman Matthew Vough, who co-hosted the event along with Residents’ Association President George Brown.
“We ran the first one in Dupont back in early April, and I decided that I wanted to take this to every county,” Vough said.
It was a packed house at the Innovation Center as Vough rolled out a panel of guests to talk about the opioid crisis that is currently ongoing in Luzerne County, as well as all over the United States.
“Each person on the panel has been touched, either personally or professionally, by drug and alcohol abuse,” Brown said.
The list of guests included Luzerne County District Attorney Stefanie Salvantis, Judge Michael T. Vough, Greg Griffin of the Citizens Opioid Committee of Luzerne County, Steve Ross, the administrator of the Luzerne County Drug and Alcohol Program and Heather Jones and John Fabiseski from Luzerne County Community College.
According to Salvantis, opioid overdose fatalities have been dropping since last year, with over 40 fewer deaths being reported in 2019.
She added that there are “more opportunities for people who have suffered from substance abuse than ever before.”
Griffin showcased three letters from various Luzerne County borough councils that all made it to the desk of U.S. Attorney General William Barr, with 22 total signatures from council members across Hazleton, Wilkes-Barre and the rest of the county.
Ross and Fabiseski were in attendance to talk about a unique program that LCCC offers to recovering addicts, a 16-credit diploma in addiction recovery. This diploma is the only one in the state.
“We’re providing a pathway to those who thought higher education might not be possible,” Ross said.
Fabiseski’s story in particular was an interesting one, as a recovering addict himself.
“In January of 2014, I didn’t want to breathe. I ended up detoxing in a jail cell after a suicide attempt,” Fabiseski said.
Through the help of programs offered by the county, Fabiseski was able to clean up and begin on the road to recovery, where he’s been since 2016.
He was one of a few participants to share their story, as audience members chimed in with their own tales of abuse and recovery after the panel had concluded.
In addition to the panel discussion, many different agencies, including the Luzerne County Drug and Alcohol Program and the Pinnacle Treatment Center Network, were in attendance on Wednesday night to offer their support and showcase what their programs offered to helping combat the opioid crisis.