Assemblyman Steven Cymbrowitz, Chairman of the Assembly’s Committee on Alcoholism and Drug Abuse, brought Arlene González-Sánchez, Commissioner of the NYS Office of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Services to see firsthand how SAFE achieves its impressive record of successes.
SAFE provides our community with counseling and support in dealing with addictions. It has also developed an active prevention program for local yeshivah students in grades five through 12.
SAFE, made up of two components—the outpatient program which works discretely with patients addicted to drugs, alcohol or gambling, and Project SAFE which provides education and prevention programs, has been providing its services to clients from a widening geographic area since its creation by community members in 2003.
“When you think of drug problems, our community doesn’t immediately pop into your head, but there are residents with gambling, opiate, prescription drug, and alcohol abuse problems. SAFE sees 1,100 individuals walk through its doors each month. That’s why I thought that it was important for the Commissioner to personally see SAFE’s state-of-the-art building and hear about its treatment philosophy from its founders, current board members, and executive director,” Cymbrowitz stated.
“The two hour meeting enabled Commissioner González-Sánchez to learn how this community-founded and financed organization is able to successfully reach so many residents with addictions, as well as the governmental obstacles SAFE faces in providing its services,” Cymbrowitz said.
“It is my hope that the Commissioner will be able to utilize some of what she heard at SAFE to make her department even more responsive to the needs of addiction treatment programs throughout the New York State. Ike Dweck, SAFE’s Executive Director, shared the insight he gained from his many years of working as an addiction counselor and executive,” Cymbrowitz continued
It takes years of experience as well as innovative thinking to develop an effective drug prevention program. It also takes determination and energy to convince schools of the need to offer such programs. In addition to an extensive curriculum that includes units on self esteem and healthy living, SAFE has become even more proactive in preventing drug abuse by young people. It has recently implemented a confidential drug testing program in local yeshivahs.
The SAFE foundation is certainly something to be learned from.
