CHILLICOTHE, Ohio — The Hope Partnership Project (HPP), held its annual corporate member meeting Thursday. During the meeting, the organization presented its community awards.
In a statement, the Hope Partnership Project said, “Those honored included Michael Benson of Benson-Susser Law Office for his assistance with legal filings to establish HPP as a not-for-profit corporation in Ohio. Also honored were Judge Michael Ater as government advocate of the year for his vision of and establishing the drug
court in the Ross County Common Pleas court. Ater was also instrumental in securing funding
for the Hope Partnership Project coordinator in 2015.
BrightView Health, a Cincinnati based substance use disorder treatment provider, was
recognized as Medication Assisted Treatment Provider of the Year for its rapid deployment in
Chillicothe of services for those patients with substance use disorder. They provide evidence-based treatments for substance use disorder in Chillicothe. They collaborate and cooperate with
Adena’s Emergency Department to offer same day or next day appointments for those who have been
identified with opioid use disorder and are seeking treatment for their disease.
Integrated Services for Behavioral Health (ISBH) was recognized for being a Mental Health and
Substance Abuse Advocate of the Year. This award highlighted the vision and community focus
ISBH has, an example of which is a social worker embedded in the Chillicothe Police Department that helps coordinate services for citizens that law enforcement encounters that need support. Joanna Denny, a licensed independent social worker, has become part of the team with the police department assisting officers with resources they previously did not have access to.
The Recovery Advocate of the Year is Christina Arredondo (air-reh-don-doe), a chemical
dependency counselor and peer recovery supporter supervisor. She experienced the loss of her
daughter and unborn grandchild to an overdose. She turned that unspeakable pain into action
by opening a women’s recovery home, founded the Ross County Outreach and Recovery Center
where people can be accepted where they are in their journey, providing basic human needs
and connections. She works at the Rulon Center, a men’s residential treatment program in
Chillicothe and also helped to found First Capital Prevention on Main, with outreach to LGBTQ
youth and any other youth that needs a connection.
Donna Collier-Stepp, also a licensed independent social worker helped to start Adena Maternity
Center’s Centering Program for women with substance use disorder. This program provides
buprenorphine medication-assisted treatment as well as group counseling and other social
supports. This program was recognized by Ohio Medicaid as a Best Practice and was used as a
model for other programs.
Also recognized was Another Chance Ministries (ACM) of Zion Baptist Church, founded by Rev.
Dr. J. Troy Gray in 2011 with a recovery home for men and since then has expanded to multiple
recovery homes for men and women and has touched over 400 lives of those who came to ACM with no
hope. Now in Ross and Highland Counties, with recovery housing for men and women and an outpatient
treatment center in Greenfield, ACM continues to bring about renewal in our community. ACM has also
guided over 30 people in recovery to jobs in substance use disorder treatment roles.
The MADE Program and Drug-Free Clubs of America were the final agency being recognized. MADE,
which stands for My Attitude Determines Everything, has impacted innumerable high schools students
by setting the peer expectation of living a substance-free life. Data over time has shown this program
has a positive impact on preventing substance abuse in young people. MADE hosts The Buck Fifty, a 150
mile relay runs through Ross County, raises money to support the programming including drug testing of
students across the region. Dave Huggins, leader of this effort received the award on behalf of the
organization.
HPP, a not for profit collaborative made up of over 60 community partners and 150 individual members
supports public events, shares promising practices, recommends policy changes, and continues to
advocate for affected individuals and families by assuring partnerships and resources for SUD
prevention, early intervention, treatment, and recovery in Ross County.”