GRADUATE TELLS HOW PORTAGE HELPED HIM OVERCOME ADDICTION TO
DRUGS

BATHURST - Eric Buckley was a Mirimachi teenager addicted to
drugs.

"It was mostly prescription drugs, narcotics, it wasn't so much
drinking," said the 22-year-old graduate from Portage Atlantic's
residential treatment centre at Cassidy Lake in Kings County. Portage
is a non-profit organization that is dedicated to the social
rehabilitation of substance abusers.

Buckley told a community breakfast in Bathurst how addiction to drugs
affected his life to the point when he didn't even recognize his own
father on a park bench sitting beside him. The Portage Atlantic
program helped him overcome his addictions.

"I first heard about the program when I was in detox, and I thought it
would be good to get out of the city. I graduated three years ago, and
stayed clean for about six months, and then I relapsed. About a year
and half after that I decided I wanted a good life again, so I went
back."

The bilingual program serves youth between the ages of 14 and 21 with
serious substance abuse problems on the therapeutic community model,
which through positive peer pressure and role modeling helps youth
increase their self-esteem by learning positive coping mechanisms.

"In there (Cassidy Lake) it's a whole different world," said Buckley.
"Your forced to face things about yourself you don't really feel
comfortable facing or dealing with, but those are the issues that led
me to drugs to avoid those things, and when you are forced to look at
them, then you can better yourself, and fix them, you're more able to
deal with stuff when you get out."

People who deal with youth at risk on a regular basis attended the
event. RCMP and municipal police officers, addiction service workers,
health-care workers, educators, and municipal politicians were among
the dozens in attendance.

RCMP Sergeant Scott S. Sawyer attended the breakfast and was not aware
of Portage Atlantic program. "It's timely because right now the RCMP
is working on a crime reduction strategy within the province and part
of that strategy would be to work with different partners, and the
Portage treatment centre would definitely be someone we would be
interested in working with."

Carol Tracey, director of development for Portage Atlantic who
organized the breakfast, said the treatment facility located on
Cassidy Lake has been open since 1996. Since that time it has treated
approximately 100 youth a year, and has now graduated over 1,400
people. "Unfortunately, the need for these services grew. Right now we
have 50 beds, and we hope to have 64 in the future."

The breakfast, which is a second of series planned by Portage, was
organized to raise awareness of the services of the treatment centre
was held during National Addiction Awareness Week.

National Addictions Awareness Week, Nov. 15 to 21, is observed each
year to gain awareness and understanding of addictions.