Thanks to a new partnership between Families Against Narcotics (FAN) and the Northville Police Department, more people who are seeking treatment for a drug or alcohol addiction will have a convenient, local option for accessing the help they need.
FAN, a Macomb County-based nonprofit that assists individuals and families affected by substance use disorder (SUD), announced that its Hope Not Handcuffs initiative is now up and running in Northville.
Hope Not Handcuffs is designed to give people who are struggling with SUD a safe and easy way to access help: by visiting their local police station.
The program’s concept is simple: Any person who is battling a substance use disorder can go to a participating agency and request help. They will be greeted with support, compassion and respect. One of FAN’s trained volunteer “Angels” will be dispatched to meet them. The Angel will then contact FAN’s Call Center and work with them to get the individual placed into treatment. In addition, program participants will be connected with peer-support services and their families will be offered family-support services.
Northville Police Chief Alan Maciag said, “Our Police Department is excited to partner with Families Against Narcotics to provide the Hope Not Handcuffs program to our community. Persons in need of help for addiction can come directly to the Police Department to receive it. People with addictions should not suffer alone and Hope Not Handcuffs is a great resource for persons seeking help.”
Since its inception in 2017, Hope Not Handcuffs has been implemented at 142 law enforcement agencies and community partners across Michigan, and has connected people to addiction treatment resources more than 12,300 times.
Volunteers needed
FAN’s Hope Not Handcuffs program, which depends on volunteer Angels to help it run smoothly, is looking for people in the Northville area to fill that role.
“Our volunteer Angels are such an integral part of the Hope Not Handcuffs initiative,” Program Director Kim Baffo explained. “By volunteering as an Angel, people can assist fellow community members in finding recovery and getting a fresh start on life. This makes the community as a whole healthier. By working together, we can also reduce the stigma associated with the disease of addiction and facilitate positive change.”
Baffo noted that the schedule for volunteer Angels is “extremely flexible” and the work is “incredibly rewarding.”
For more information on becoming a volunteer Angel, or to register for an upcoming virtual or in-person training session, visit this
webpage,
email or call 833-202-HOPE (4673).
Photo: from left,
Officer Scott Groff; Officer Brian Dogonski; Captain Greg Hannewald; Hope not Handcuffs Program Director Kim Baffo and Regional Coordinator Safaa Elmessiri; Police Chief Alan Maciag and Detective Erin Larsen.
