Parkersburg luncheon celebrates those recovering from substance abuse
PARKERSBURG — A luncheon was held Thursday to celebrate people in recovery from substance abuse.
The second annual honorary luncheon was sponsored by the Office of the Public Defender for the Fourth Judicial Circuit of Wood and Wirt counties. The Public Defender’s Office is in Parkersburg.
The luncheon honored clients who were released from incarceration to go to treatment as part of a plea/sentencing agreement and have graduated or are working toward graduation from a treatment program or facility. About 100 people a year are in the recovery program.
Those speaking at the luncheon have the goals of saving lives, said Dominique Kirl, substance abuse mental health treatment coordinator for the Public Defender Corp.’s Fourth Judicial Circuit.
A mission of the Public Defender’s Office is to provide treatment for those in the grips of substance abuse rather than to see them sent off to prison. Kirl works to find treatment programs for those facing incarceration. She said she tries to help people on the road to recovery.
The Public Defender’s Office program has helped families regain their sons and daughters and for those recovering to get employment, Kirl said.
“We are thankful they won’t die from an overdose,” she said.
This year, Kirl was presented an Outstanding Support Staff award by the West Virginia Public Defender Services for her work with clients suffering from substance abuse disorder.
Public Defender’s offices in other judicial circuits have added substance abuse mental health treatment coordinators, or recovery coaches, after seeing the success of the program in Parkersburg, said Michele Rusen, chief public defender in the Parkersburg Public Defender’s Office. Kirl was hired as the state’s first coordinator in a Public Defender’s Office in 2017.
The office works to get people help to break their addiction and to stay clean, Rusen said.
Kirl told the clients to don’t stop on the road to recovery — addiction will always be there — and to lend a hand to others who are struggling. Keep at it, go to meetings, and stay involved, she told the clients.
“We will help you in any way we can,” Kirl told them.
Several clients spoke at the luncheon on how the program has helped them improve their lives.
The area’s recovery system is getting stronger with treatment centers being opened, Kirl said.
Program clients have helped in cleanup and landscaping projects in downtown Parkersburg, Kirl said.
Sister Molly Bauer, senior program officer with the Sisters Health Foundation, described the foundation’s programs that promote healthy lives and communities.
“Collaboration is essential to address the needs in our area,” she said.
She told those at the luncheon to learn from their mistakes. The graduates should be acknowledged for reclaiming a meaningful life, she said.
Sister Molly encouraged the graduates to work with others on like-minded projects.
The Sisters Health Foundation provided money for the substance abuse mental health treatment coordinator’s position.
Wood County Prosecutor Pat Lefebure described local programs that are trying to combat the substance abuse problem. Lefebure encouraged those who become sober to be active in the community helping others. Check on people in your community, he said.
Lefebure congratulated the clients on their recovery efforts and wished them the best.
Hannah West, an attorney in the Public Defender’s Office, said she has lost friends and clients to drug addiction. The Public Defender’s Office will try to get people on the road to recovery, West said.
“We will give you a map for the road to recovery,” she said.
“We hope to save lives,” West said.
Paul LaPann can be reached at plapann@newsandsentinel.com