As a social worker who lives in Brattleboro, I fully support our town becoming a site for an overdose prevention center (OPC).
For nearly 10 years, I have worked as a health educator and then as a social worker with teenagers grappling with the devastating effects of addiction and recovery on their parents, aunts, uncles, siblings, beloved community members, friends, and chosen family.
A through-line message that I have heard over and over from these youth: If it were up to me, I would create a treatment center here in my community.
I would make sure that it would be a comfortable place without any judgment so that people struggling with addiction wouldn't fear getting the help they need.