Methuen Police Department’s community engagement specialists, Jacquelyn Ingersoll, left, and Jennifer Burns,right, became full-time employees with the department after its budget was increased by nearly 8 percent last month. (Courtesy Photograph.)
Methuen is expanding its efforts to help residents with drug addiction find help.
Community Addiction Resource Engagement Services (CARES) specialists Jacquelyn Ingersoll and Jennifer Burns are moving from part-time to full-time work to “educate diverse populations on the consequences of drug use,” according to Methuen Police Chief Joseph Solomon. The CARES initiative aims to “reach out to high-risk populations in the community” and to also “notify residents that they can obtain resources from the Methuen Police Department and other organizations if they suffer from addiction.”
“Jennifer and Jacquelyn have been working 21 hours per week since last October. However, it can take more than six hours to help just one person gain admission to a rehab facility, so it became clear that their hours needed to be expanded if we wanted to maximize their potential,” Solomon said. “We are so grateful to be able to have them here in a full-time capacity to continue the amazing work they do.”
A more than $12 million Methuen police budget for the fiscal year beginning this month, passed recently by the Methuen City Council, represents an eight percent funding increase over the fiscal year which ended June 30.
Between CARES’ launch during October, 2015, and May, 2016, Burns and Ingersoll assisted 385 individuals and family members in exploring the different resources available to those suffering from drug addiction, according to a statement.
The two specialists “also emphasize the importance of awareness surrounding drug addiction, especially for the families and friends of those suffering from an addiction. To satisfy this need, Burns and Ingersoll have started organizing educational workshops in the community and providing resources for the recovery process.”
Great job to Methuen PD. Mayor Fiorentini could learn something. Hire a chief with vision instead of your personal bully denaro. Leadership is needed at HPD your chief won’t tell your secrets you paid him enough to hold them tight.