A safe haven amid dramatic rise in overdose deaths

Sep. 11—Pennsylvania's overdose deaths rose dramatically last year as part of a troubling nationwide trend.

"It is a reminder to people in recovery and to those that support them that no one is alone in their recovery journey," said Jennifer Smith, the state's secretary of drug and alcohol programs.

Preliminary data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows more than 5,200 overdose deaths were reported in Pennsylvania last year, she said. That's an increase of about 16%.

This week, Smith visited the York City branch of the Recovery Advocacy Service Empowerment Project, a nonprofit that assists those who are in recovery from substance abuse disorder.

The program is on the front lines of the fight against addiction.

"There is hope and you can get there," said Angel Fiore-Torres, its chief operating officer. "It's not always a straight path that gets us there, but we do get there."

The people at the RASE Project witness recovery in action every day, Smith said. "They are living proof that with the right treatment, the right resources or the right supports, living your best life in recovery is not only possible, it's probable."

National Recovery Month celebrates the lives of those living in recovery from substance abuse disorder through an evidence-based stigma reduction campaign.

Two members of the RASE project — themselves in recovery — spoke about their experiences with substance abuse and recovery.

Fiore-Torres said her story was not unique but that there is hope for those out there struggling with substance abuse. She started using alcohol at 13, and her disease progressed until she started using opioids and heroin. It culminated with a felony robbery charge in her 20s, for which she served over two years in a county prison.

"This life is not for you," Fiore-Torres remembered a judge telling her. "You need to find another way to live."

After relocating, Fiore-Torres lived in a recovery house, where she had checks and balances like needing to do chores or have a full-time job.

"With all those pressures, I started to learn a new way to live," she said.

RASE Project supervisor Colin Suber believes there's no lost cause. He, too, went through a recovery program.

"There was no point in my childhood or as a teenager where I said 'I want to be a heroin addict, I want to be an alcoholic and let's give this a shot for the next decade or so,'" he said. "It amazes me that in 2021, I still see debates on whether this is a disease or not."

In his career, Suber said he tries to be the type of support he needed when he was trying to get sober.

"When it's all said and done, if I was able to help even one person, it was all worth it."

For more information on what DDAP is doing for National Recovery Month, visit the department's website. To find drug and alcohol treatment, call 1-800-622-HELP(4357). For more information on the RASE Project, visit the project's website. For the York/Adams Drug and Alcohol Commission, visit the county's website.

Matt Enright can be reached via email at menright@yorkdispatch.com or via Twitter at @Matthew_Enright.

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