Homeless advocate calls for detox centre
Says ball is rolling after drinking debates
Stewart Burnett
Northern News Services
Thursday, February 9, 2017
INUVIK
During the recent Sunday bar debates, Coun. Clarence Wood wished a similar passion were put toward getting a new treatment centre in the region.
Joey Amos is on a mission to make the Beaufort Delta Detox Centre a reality. The idea at least seems to have widespread support after the topic of alcohol addiction came to the fore during the Sunday bar drinking debate. - Stewart Burnett/NNSL photo
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Joey Amos has been up to that challenge.
Amos, manager of the John Wayne Kiktorak warming centre, the been working on the idea for a few months now and is hoping to build support with various community agencies.
"We're trying to plan this so that we're doing it right, instead of just running off and trying to create a disturbance," said Amos. "We want to do our homework first, make sure that we have a good proposal to the interested members."
He wants to get the town, the Inuvialuit Regional Corporation, the Gwich'in Tribal Council, the GNWT and everyone else on board.
His vision for the centre would be co-ed and open to anybody, with between 10 and 20 beds.
Amos would like to have what he calls "grassroots people" - those who have had personal experience with addiction and overcome it - serve to help residents of the centre.
"I envision using some of our own people, not necessarily those that have certificates or diplomas in counselling or stuff like that - I think that they have a reason and there's a purpose for them - but at the same time I'd rather use our own people locally."
They could be mentors, facilitators, life skill coaches or anything else appropriate.
Programs could be six months or a year, including on-the-land segments, learning how to cut wood, set snares and get back into a healthy state of mind.
"I can see them integrating back into the work life slowly," said Amos.
"There's a lot that could be done. Right now as it is, people that do go out to programs for treatment it's (in the) south and when they're done with the program, they're sent back to their own town . and they don't have any aftercare in place for them."
Many of those people fail in their recovery because of that, he said.
Amos isn't under any delusions that such a venture would be cheap, though.
"I'm going to dream big, because I'm tired of dreaming small," he said.
"When you dream small, you get small stuff. I could be looking at anywhere on an annual basis from $500,000 to $1 million just to make sure that we are providing a service that is productive, something that is going to do something for our folks who are suffering from addiction."
Those numbers were just spit balling but based on his experience at the warming Centre, Amos knows it's going to be expensive. He hopes upper levels of government can see the value in it.
"When I look at it, it's also job creation," said Amos.
"It's time to start investing in our own people instead of looking elsewhere."
