TRAX PROGRAM PARTNERS
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ROAD RECOVERY AWARDED TWO GRANTS FROM US DEPT OF JUSTICE / OFFICE OF JUVENILE JUSTICE DELINQUENCY PREVENTION (OJJDP):
Grant #1: Category V: Statewide and Regional Mentoring Initiative for Youth Impacted by Opioids and Drug Addiction
Grant #2: Opioid Affected Youth Initiative To Provide VirtualTrax and in-person Trax Program Services at Youth Clubhouses with NYS-OASAS from 2021 – 2023
The Office of Justice Programs awarded Road Recovery (among organizations based in 25 states and the District of Columbia under OJJDP’s ‘Mentoring Opportunities for Youth Initiative’) a 3-year grant to support the implementation and delivery of mentoring services to youth populations that are at risk for juvenile delinquency, drug abuse (especially opioid abuse), victimization, and problem and high-risk behaviors.
OJJDP additionally awarded Road Recovery a second 3-year ‘Opioid Affected Youth Initiative’ grant to support a key Department of Justice priority — to provide programs and services to youth and families impacted by opioid addiction. Through this program, OJJDP is helping states and communities develop a data-driven, coordinated response to opioid abuse-related challenges that impact youth and community safety.
Arograms and in-person Trax Programs (post pandemic) to community-based Youth Clubhouses working with at-risk youth (ages 17 years old and younger).
Created and operated by OASAS within 10 Empire regions in New York State, Youth Clubhouses are safe facilities for young people in recovery or at risk of addiction to develop social skills that promote long-term health, wellness and a drug-free lifestyle. Young participants meet weekly with Road Recovery’s Creative Staff Mentors from the entertainment industry, all who have faced similar struggles, to help them create, plan and execute their own creative projects, live events and video/recordings.
Seasonal VIRTUALTRAX Programs launched in January 2021 for 14 statewide Youth Clubhouses and continued through September 2021, then transitioning to in-person TRAXPROGRAMS presented at up to 17 statewide Youth Clubhouses for seasonal after-school programming through September 2023. Each seasonal/cyclical program culminates in a Performance Finale celebrating the creative works and voices of participating youth. Road Recovery’s goal is to continue partnering with OASAS’s Youth Clubhouses to provide programs and services to at-risk youth impacted by opioid addiction and youth in recovery on a path to living fulfilling, productive lives, while helping to combat the negative impacts of opioid use disorder.s a Peer Group Specialist, Road Recovery is again partnering with the NYS Office of Addiction Services and Supports (OASAS) to provide peer support and music workshops in after-school Trax Programs.
Road Recovery was awarded a State Opioid Response (SOR) Grant to provide their Trax Programs at Youth Clubhouses created & operated by NYS Office of Alcoholism & Substance Abuse Services (OASAS)
Road Recovery was selected by NYS-OASAS to receive grant funding to expand their TRAX PROGRAM peer support services beyond NYC at several selected Youth Clubhouses throughout New York State. Governor Cuomo’s rollout in federal funding is made possible through the State Opioid Response (SOR) to expand initiatives and access to recovery support services to at-risk youth and young adults as part of aggressive efforts to combat the opioid epidemic in New York State.
Road Recovery Trax Program locations:
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- Creative Connections Clubhouse, Amsterdam, NY
- Oneonta Teen Center / Club Odyssey, Oneonta, NY
- Columbia County Clubhouse, Hudson, NY
- Greene County Clubhouse, Catskill
- Yonkers YMCA Youth Recovery Clubhouse, Yonkers, NY
- Horizons Clubhouse, Massena, NY
- Ronthahiiohstha:ke – A/CDP Clubhouse, St, Regis Mohawk Tribe, Akwesasne, NY
- The LGBT Center, New York, NY
- Elmcor Youth & Adult Services, Queens, NY
Warwick Valley High School, Warwick, NY
“Throughout my twenty-five years in education, I have viewed numerous school assemblies and presentations intended to motivate adolescents to make good decisions. A few of the better ones even have urged teens to reach out for help when faced with struggles. None have come close to delivering the message the way the young participants of Road Recovery have delivered it here in Warwick Valley High School. It is a message framed with honesty, integrity, and love. Most importantly, as a school instructional leader I clearly recognize the powerful connection Road Recovery outreach programs have consistently made between performance venue and curricular activities in the classroom. To any school leaders wishing to develop strong character education programs, consider placing Road Recovery at the core of your efforts. Your students will thank you.” – Richard Linkens, Director of English, Social Studies, Academic Intervention Services, Warwick Valley Central School District, Warwick, NY
Voices Project – Haines, Alaska
Road Recovery took a ground breaking expansion trip to rural Alaska where Road Recovery’s staff made a powerful impact on the entire town of Haines (population 2,500). Road Recovery’s Performance Workshops program in collaboration with the Voices Project, a local Alaskan-based program designed to increase education and awareness of the impacts of substance abuse on people’s lives in the small rural town.
“Road Recovery impacted our kids & community in a most extraordinary and unique manner, imparting deeper awareness of substance abuse. The program gave meaningful life tools for sobriety and drug-free lifestyle to addicts and non addicts of all ages, with a focus on creative expression as a means of communicating thoughts and feelings, in the context of community.”
Cherri Rakers, Parent Haines, Alaska
“Road Recovery’s Jay and Charles concocted a compelling energy virus that proved infectious with the kids. I love witnessing the moment when values systems ‘click’. It happened many times.”
Dan Henry Program Director, KHNS-FM, Haines, Alaska
Notre Dame of Mt. Carmel, Cedar Knolls, NJ
Fr. Jude Salus, Pastor – Notre Dame of Mt. Carmel, a Roman Catholic parish in Cedar Knolls, New Jersey discovered Road Recovery while searching for a solution to his community’s crisis after witnessing firsthand the devastation of drug overdoses and deaths among the youth in his community. The number of deaths climbed almost 70 percent from the previous year’s total of 26, with victims between 17 and 59 years old, according to law enforcement officials.
“I am both bi-polar and an addict. Before recovery, I was not going to school. I tried to commit suicide. I was with an abusive boyfriend. Basically, I was out of control and no one knew how to handle me. I knew I needed help and was sent away… In other programs, people are there because they have to be. The court made them go. In Road Recovery, people come because they want to. Road Recovery is fun. The staff people are fun. The music is fun. I feel free when I’m at Road Recovery. It doesn’t matter what you sound like, the staff always says we are great. I had no music experience at all. The Road Recovery folks always find a part for you and encourage all of us to keep moving forward. Road Recovery is a place where I want to come. We’re like a little family.”
Amber, Road Recovery program participant (17 years old)
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