Police Department Delivers Gifts to Addiction Nonprofit

From left: Deputy Police Chief John Voto; Jennifer Faretra, Director, Tewksbury Treatment Center; Kelley Giasullo, Learn to Cope; Jennie Welch, Community Service Officer, Tewksbury Police Department; and Lieutenant James Giasullo, Tewksbury Fire Department.

TEWKSBURY— The Tewksbury Police Athletic League and local chapter of the nonprofit Learn to Cope have conducted a holiday drive for patients and families dealing with treatment for addictions to opiates and other drugs over the holidays. The second annual drive was operated by Lahey Health Behavioral Services, according to a statement from the facility, and located in the grounds of Tewksbury State Hospital.

Tewksbury's three addiction-treatment facilities provide clinical, medical and counseling services for men, women and their children who are trying to achieve long-term sobriety from opioids, alcohol and other drugs. The three treatment facilities include over 100 beds, an inpatient detoxification unit; a residential treatment home for women and their children; and a residential home for men.

Learn to Cope is a nonprofit group started by Joanne Peterson in 2004. With funding from the Massachusetts Department of Public Health, Learn to Cope offers families with loved ones dealing with addiction support, including the overdose-reversal medication naloxone. Members nationwide have successfully reversed 50 opioid overdoses in their homes.

If your loved one needs assistance, call Kathy Day at 508-245-1050, regional manager for Cambridge, Tewksbury, Lowell, Gloucester and Salem.

Image: Tewksbury Police Department Twitter account