SOUTHIE DRUG PROGRAMS SPLIT FED GRANT

Two South Boston-based drug treatment programs are sharing $640,000 in
federal funds, a windfall officials hope will help turn the tide on
drug addiction.

Jim Sweeney, president of the five-year-old Cushing House, which
operates a residential home for 16 boys striving to kick addictions to
drugs, said he hopes to start construction as soon as next week on a
similar home for girls using the $300,000 federal check announced yesterday.

"We're going to absolutely make those girls safe," said an emotional
Sweeney yesterday.

The residential home for women and girls will be located on the same
block as the boys' program, but will serve females from all over
Massachusetts. The boys' home has treated more than 300 males in its
five years on Old Colony Avenue. Most residents stay for between four
and six months.

Carolyn A. Castro-Donlan, deputy director of the state's Bureau of
Substance Abuse Services, said, "We definitely don't have enough
facilities in this area for females."

"We don't have the capacity to meet the needs" particularly for
young women and girls, said Castro-Donlan. As a result, many end up in
mental health programs that are not able to properly serve youths
trying to beat a heroin or OxyContin addiction, she said.

Another $340,000 is going to the South Boston Community Health Center
to fund a program to prevent drug abuse and provide treatment to
youthful addicts.

U.S. Rep. Stephen Lynch, who announced the federal grants, said the
funding demonstrates the continued focus on curbing drug abuse by
community leaders.