Drug Free Montgomery County awards nearly $56K

The purpose of Drug Free Montgomery County Coalition is to bring together a cross section of the community in a countywide effort to reduce youth and adult use/abuse and the negative impact of alcohol, tobacco and other drugs through multiple strategies across multiple sectors.  The Coalition wants to see Montgomery County be a safe and healthy community that is free from alcohol, tobacco and drug misuse and abuse. 

Our goals are to increase knowledge and skills while changing behaviors, attitudes and the environment of our community.  We want to promote evidence-based programs in our community and provide resources to help modify unhealthy behaviors.  We want to advocate for policies that promote the reduction of drug abuse and support access to treatment for substance abuse disorders.  We want to collaborate and form community relationships that foster the reduction of substance abuse issues in our community. 

The Coalition has been in existence since 1990 serving as the local coordinating council for the Governor’s Commission for a Drug Free Indiana.  The Coalition is governed by an executive board/leadership team who are responsible for guiding the organization. 

Our Coalition meets bi-monthly to help communicate with the community and increase awareness of the substance abuse issues facing the community as well as bringing interested community members together to identify solutions for substance abuse issues.  These meetings are open to the public and are held in February, April, June, August, October and December.

Another part of the work of the Coalition is the administration of the mini-grant process that allows drug user fees collected by the county to be utilized to help address substance use issues in our community. These fees are to be utilized in four areas.  This year we were able to grant $55,968.48 to support programs in Montgomery County that are addressing the substance use issue.  The following are the grant recipients for this year. 

1. Education/Prevention – This includes education/awareness programs, activities, services, or materials aimed at deterring individuals from the use or abuse of alcohol or other drugs and the prevention of related problems. 

• Crawfordsville Police Department is receiving $4,018.92 for CPD Detectives to attend the National Crimes Against Children Conference. Focus areas of this training will include forensic interviewing, trafficking, internet investigation, sexual abuse, and sex offenders. This training will be used when investigating crimes against children that involve parental substance abuse.
• City of Crawfordsville – Mobile Integrated Health is receiving $460.00 for medication management & safety to provide medication lock boxes and weekly pill organizers for Mobile Integrated Health Programs. Each item will be equipped with a quick reference card that lists Montgomery County drop-off locations for unused/expired medications as well as 24/7 substance use and mental health helplines.
• Montgomery County Probation will receive $2,000 for drug and alcohol education/intervention programs.  The main goal for the use of these funds would be to provide financial assistance with the cost of substance abuse educational program, specifically the Prime for Life program. This will be for probationers who need the assistance and it would lessen the burden on those clients and help them to feel less overwhelmed. It is believed that there is a strong relationship between substance abuse and criminal behavior. Therefor providing assistance will allow more individuals to be able to take these drug and alcohol educational classes and hopefully reduce the usage.
• Montgomery County Probation Department is receiving $2,240 for drug testing for youth and young adults.  These funds have been requested because the severity of drug use in Montgomery County is alarming. Not only is Montgomery County dealing with gateway drugs, but instead they are watching youth become addicted to Methamphetamine, Heroin, and synthetic drugs. Funds are being sought to reduce the drug testing costs for youth and young adults (up to age twenty-one) of Montgomery County and their families while utilizing drug testing as a supervision tool.
• Montgomery County Probation Department is receiving $3,000 for their Juvenile Cognitive Behavioral Programs and these funds will be used for their Moral Reconation Therapy Group. Moral Reconation Therapy (MRT) is an evidence-based program that provides intervention in a group setting to address common thinking errors of juveniles and young adults in the criminal justice system. Change journals are evidenced-based interactive journaling, a structured and experiential writing process that motivates and guides participants toward positive life change.
• Quest for Balance Wellness is receiving $3,750 to provide Community-Focused Grief Education and intensive training for first responders, healthcare providers, and community leaders, focusing on the intersection of grief, trauma, substance use, and suicide.
• Montgomery County Youth Service Bureau is receiving $2,000 to support National Night Out, a crime and drug prevention event.  
• Montgomery County Youth Service Bureau is receiving $1,000 for Positive Youth Programming. Grant funds will support their Inspire and Youth as Resources programs.

2. Intervention/Treatment – This includes services for those who are identified as in need of recovery from problems associated with excessive or inappropriate use of alcohol and or other drugs. Services in this area cover a spectrum of activities such as referral and assessment, a continuum of treatment services ranging from outpatient programs to residential settings. 

• Integrative Wellness will receive $500 for the Emergency Needs Fund. Funds will be used to provide out of county transportation to inpatients services, transitional housing deposits/down payments, and emergency shelter funds for local motels for those coming out of incarceration or who are starting their recovery journey.
• Integrative Wellness is receiving $4,000 for support of their Rock Out Recovery event which will provide information about stigma reduction, education, prevention, spreading awareness of the resources available to individuals needing treatment and supporting substance use disorder.
• City of Crawfordsville – Mobile Integrated Health is receiving $2,678 for the Quick Response Team 24/7 Hotline. Grant funds will pay for the contract to allow calls to be centralized to one phone number. These funds will also maintain the current 24/7 service.
• Montgomery County Probation Department will receive $3,500 for Emergency/Transitional Housing.  These funds will be used to purchase a hotel room, help pay rent, or on occasion help with something like an electricity bill if the offender is at risk of losing housing due to an outstanding bill, or if the house is unsafe without utility.
• The Recovery Coalition will receive $5,000 to help fund the Recovery Rec Center Director’s Pay. The Director oversees the peer recovery coaches, organizes and implements special events & monthly events, and manages the building, finances, and fundraisers.
• The Recovery Coalition is receiving $571.78 to fund the Float for Recovery event. Funds will be used to pay for 50 individuals to rent canoes, kayaks, or tubes to float down Sugar Creek as a group, encouraging fellowship and support.
• The Recovery Coalition will receive $2,500 for the special events/programs at the Recovery Rec Center. The Recovery Rec center provides many different programs for those in Recovery and even those who have no known substance use issues. They provide various support groups, and meetings as well as free events for the community. These funds will be used to help with Recovery Rec center expenses. The Recovery Rec Center also serves as a warming station during the winter months for this experiencing homelessness.

3. Criminal Justice/Law Enforcement – This focus area includes efforts that deal with the legal consequences of substance abuse and includes crime prevention, law enforcement, prosecution, probation, court and correctional services.  We have awarded two organizations grants in this area, they are:

• Crawfordsville Police Department will receive $10,749.78 to fund the Mental Health Initiative 2.0. Funds will be used to purchase the set up and usage of PowerVitals, which is an early intervention software used to recognize early signs of stress and assist in mental health. The Crawfordsville Police Department (CPD) would use this alongside the current mental health initiatives that include peer support and access to mental health services. This software would be the next step in addressing mental health issues among officers, which can frequently lead to substance abuse issues.
• Montgomery County Probation Department is receiving $5,000 for Drug Court Incentives. Drug Court is a program to supervise those who were involved in the criminal justice system and or had substance abuse issues. The goal of this program is to help the offender learn how to maintain sobriety from drugs and alcohol in a supervision program. Research has shown that punishment alone does not change offending behavior. But punishment and other techniques such a positive reinforcement is the most way of changing behaviors. The funding from this will assist in giving positive reinforcement to the offender. That may be through tokens, gas cards, helping with payments for drug screens, medication, or other treatment costs. This program not only punishes the offender for bad behavior but it praises them for good behavior.
• Montgomery County Probation Department is receiving $3,000 for Veteran’s Court Incentives. Veterans Court is a problem-solving court that utilizes non-adversarial approach to reach and treat justice-involved veterans. It provides them with the support they need during their time with the justice system and offers help with mental health services. One of the evidence-based components of problem-solving court is to reward positive behavior modification through the use of incentives. These funds will be used to help purchase the incentives such as small tokens, gas and food gift cards, payments for drug screen fees, and/or medication and treatment costs.

All of the grant recipients must agree to complete a report on their activities at the end of the grant period, promote drug free living consistently in their programs and organizations, attend at least three Coalition meetings during the year and attend the Red Ribbon Breakfast in October. 

Congratulations to all of our grant recipients and the work they are doing to help Montgomery County become a healthy community free from substance use.