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City treatment court celebrates sobriety

OBSERVER Photo by Rebecca Cuthbert City of Dunkirk Mayor Wilfred Rosas speaks at the Dunkirk City Treatment Court graduation Thursday in city hall. Also pictures is the Honorable Walter F. Drag, Drug Court judge.

For the graduates, coordinators and staff of the Dunkirk City Treatment Court, Thursday was a celebration, an expression of gratitude and a reinforced commitment to sobriety and a healthier lifestyle.

City of Dunkirk Mayor Willie Rosas told the crowd at city hall that the drug epidemic needs a multi-angled approach; the cycle of arrest, release, repeat won’t change anything.

“We have to treat this like a business, and (think of) supply and demand,” he said of the scourge. “We have to cut the demand. Addiction is a sickness.”

Rosas would like to see an outpatient drug rehabilitation center in the city, so that those struggling with addiction have another resource close to home. He noted that drug addiction afflicts all communities and all cities, and that Dunkirk must be proactive in shutting it down one addict at a time.

That’s exactly what Treatment Court sets out to do with each convicted drug abuser it takes under its wing.

“The mission of the Dunkirk City Treatment Court is to provide protection for the community from repeat offenders by providing timely and effective treatment and supervision,” the event’s program stated.

Treatment Court, or “Drug Court,” provides the necessary tools for these individuals to recover and become productive citizens, while also holding them accountable for their past missteps. The ultimate goal? Sober graduates who won’t make those same mistakes again.

Judge Walter Drag, the program’s champion and hands-on overseer, reasoned that humans are creatures of habit, and that sometimes makes for very bad choices, especially when it comes to the ways we cope with life’s “storms.”

“We face storms in life … and we build walls around us to insulate ourselves from those storms,” he said. “But the storms always end. (This program) gives people an opportunity to get through those storms, and hope for a better day. You can have a good, solid, healthy life for you and your loved ones.”

Drag said Treatment Court is a wellness program. It shows participants how to become better, healthier, and more productive individuals. He thanked the day’s graduates for their dedication and commitment, and also thanked the loved ones who have encouraged the graduates throughout their journeys, since “no one does this alone.”

LeeAnn Lazarony, the program’s resource coordinator, introduced each graduate by first name, and she and Drag presented them with certificates and tokens of their success and sobriety.

One graduate told the audience how difficult the program could be, but how that is exactly what helped him succeed.

“I’m not proud of some of the decisions I’ve made, but I am proud of how far I’ve come,” he said. “(The program) wasn’t easy, but I didn’t need ‘easy.’ I needed this hard work.”

The graduate also thanked the staff and program administrators, acknowledging that they didn’t take the easy way out, either.

“It would have been easier for you to put me in jail and wipe your hands clean of me,” he said, “but you didn’t give up on me. I will be forever grateful for that.”

Another graduate explained that she had tried treatment programs in the past to conquer her addiction, but that for one reason or another, none of them did the trick. Insurance would run out, her resolve would falter, and she’d use drugs again. But then she ended up in Drug Court, and found that there was, indeed, a better future out there.

“They helped me stand on my own feet again,” she said. “…Tell yourself that you deserve this. Give yourself a chance. You deserve sobriety.”

One graduate said that the treatment program gave his family back to him, and vice versa.

“Because of this program, I can now become the father my daughter needs and the man my family deserves,” he said.

The last graduate to speak also added his thanks, and shared with attendees that he has been clean and sober for 14 months.

Drag and Lazarony also handed “phase certificates” out to participants who aren’t quite ready to graduate, but who have made impressive strides toward that goal.

Chautauqua County Court Judge David Foley was invited to speak, but could not attend the ceremony due to a homicide case that he is currently working on. In his stead, Grace Hanlon, confidential law clerk, shared a few words. She told everyone that Foley has always been and will continue to be very supportive of the program, and that she finds the graduates and their stories inspiring.

From her experience with drug courts, she said, “It works if you work it, but you have to work it every day.”

Lighthouse Awards were given out to Hanlon and to Scott Wise, for their encouragement and support of the program, and for the way they have gone above and beyond the call of civic duty and common courtesy to show program participants that things will get better if they believe in themselves.

“Today, I get to help other people and watch them grow,” said Wise. “But you have to have an open mind.”

Much-loved community member Josie Christopher was also recognized for her positive energy and endless kindnesses to the program and those who graduate from it. In turn, Christopher had prepared care packages for each of the graduates.

To conclude the formal portion of the program, Drag gave the graduates bouquets of chrysanthemums and evergreens, symbolizing hope and fortitude, respectively. After a prayer of thanks by Elder Louis F. Martin, pastor of Dunkirk’s Apostolic House of Prayer, everyone was invited for refreshments in the mayor’s conference room.

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