Petition for Rehabilitation Program Hazle Township, PA

Friends,

Thank you for your overwhelming support in this initiative to provide our community with alcohol and drug rehabilitation services. I couldn’t be more proud of this group's relentless efforts toward providing our community with a place for individuals and families to find hope in an otherwise desperate time.

I see so many positive changes on the horizon, not only for those families with the courage to face addiction, but in the community as a whole. We need a fresh perspective on how the alcohol and drug rehabilitation program could positively impact our community.

I refer to Hazle Township as “our” community because I grew up there, my family currently lives there, and I, one day, would love to return to a community that I can be proud to call home.

After reading one or two negative comments on social media regarding the program I decided to do some “fact checking,” as lawyers often do. I restricted my search only to government websites, knowing that they would provide the most accurate data.

I found an overwhelming amount of data discussing the negative effects of drugs and alcohol on communities, but I couldn’t find any data supporting the unfounded claims that alcohol and drug rehabilitation programs negatively affect communities. I relied primarily on the National Institute on Drug Abuse and the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism.

I can only see this program as benefiting our community and here are the reasons why:

• The program will provide a place for members of our community to receive alcohol and drug rehabilitation near home. Therefore, families can participate in the treatment program and visit their loved one without difficulty. Family plays an integral part in rehabilitation. The program will provide services for those in treatment and their families.
• Only drug and alcohol services will be provided. The program will not provide methadone and has no plan of becoming a methadone clinic under any circumstances.
• Alcohol and drug abuse (not treatment) promotes criminal activity in our community and we must crack down on crime.
• New businesses = new jobs!
• Zola’s Lamp Post has fallen into complete disrepair. The new property will not decrease the value of homes nearby at any rate. The property will add to the aesthetic of the community.
• This program will save lives; the lives of members of your community – your teachers, attorneys, business owners, factory workers, but most importantly your families. Addiction is not a choice and it does not discriminate.

A part of me has always felt that one day I would return to the Greater Hazleton Area to start a family because I loved being raised in Hazle Township. Unfortunately, this idea has turned a dream into nightmare. The impact of alcohol and drugs on the community has reached epidemic proportions – this is problem that has needs a solution.

I challenge you to become part of the solution. There isn’t a better way. Please share in support and feel free to contact us with questions.