By Lyonel Doherty
The Town of Oliver is another municipality supporting a “passion project” to help youth recover from substance abuse.
At a recent council meeting, Celine Thompson and John Yarschenko
from The Bridge Youth and Family Services asked for a letter of support in establishing a youth recovery house in the Okanagan.
They call it their “passion project” for some of the most vulnerable families in the valley.
Thompson said there is an alarming rise of drug overdoses in our communities, adding they watched in “horror” when the death rate of children and young people (between the ages of 10 and 18) doubled from 2016 to 2017.
She noted that young people who pass away are known to staff and are not just numbers on a page.
“It has shattered us.”
Thompson said families call their front desk on a weekly basis looking for treatment for their son or daughter, only to be told that none exists here.
She stated there is an extensive wait list for the 45 publicly funded spaces in B.C. She stated this wait list is wasting a small window of opportunity that staff have with these young people, who have gathered their strength and courage to reach out for help.
Based on admittance to detox programs and coroners’ reports, there is a need for places of solace, recovery and healing for children as young as 12 and 13, Thompson pointed out.
She said this investment will stem the tide of poverty, trauma, family breakup, victimization, homelessness and mental illnesses that a lifetime of addiction can lead to.
Thompson said the recovery house will provide the tools and resources youth need to succeed while their brain is still in development and receptive to learning new ways to cope.
Thompson said their vision involves a community-wide dialogue on where significant gaps are relating to substance use resources.
She said more than 1,000 people they spoke to said the biggest gap is the absence of youth live-in treatment.
Thompson said they have begun the process of designing the building and consulting with Indigenous leaders.
Town councillor Aimee Grice said the municipality has already recognized International Overdose Awareness Day. She also spoke to a social worker from the Ministry of Children and Family Development to see what the local need was, and it was agreed that a youth treatment centre was the top priority.
Grice asked Thompson if it was their intention to build the recovery centre in Oliver.
Thompson said she has been speaking to potential donors about properties, but none of these donors are in the Oliver area.
She said a significant part of the program will involve young people connecting with nature. Therefore, they envision a rural property with access to water and trees.
Yarschenko said they need to bring a coalition of partners together to fulfill this dream by leveraging political pressure.
Thompson reiterated how underserved this region is when it comes to substance use support and recovery. Nothing exists today, she said, noting that sending young people away for treatment is quite disruptive.
Thompson said they can never make assurances that youth will be abstinent from drugs and alcohol for the rest of their lives. But with a recovery house they feel confident that youth will live healthier and cope better with their stress.
