On July 16, 2015, two New Canaan police officers knocked on the door of our house at 25 Heather Drive, to tell my wife and I that my Evan from Heaven, that funny family comedian, had died of an overdose the previous day. That young man, who lighted up the room when he walked in, had passed alone in his

On Tuesday, June 3, I attended and was honored at Liberation Program’s Spirit of Hope Gala. With a theme of “Celebrating Resilience”, the event recognized both John Maxwell and me as individuals who have had “extraordinary impact on families and communities across our region” through their “dedication to saving lives and building a safer, more compassionate world.” In receiving the

Starting with our 7th Annual Vigil, NCPSG adopted a tagline very relevant to our group: “Families Empower Recovery”. From personal experience with my son Evan, I understood that the entire family system is impacted when a loved on is struggling with addiction. Not only was it a matter of the father and mother being impacted, but Evan’s three siblings as

When I first decided to start a parent support group, I knew that eventually I would need to have a funding strategy. I finally got around to contacting Lauren Patterson, the newly-appointed (in 2017) ED at New Canaan Community Foundation. What was great for me, was that Lauren had experience in fiscal sponsorships from her previous gig in the DC

Stephen Chapin Garner is Senior Pastor at the Congregational Church of New Canaan, who I have gotten to know as we plan our 8th Annual Community Addiction Awareness Vigil. Chapin has stepped forward to help lead the candlelight vigil ceremony of the Vigil, and we are very grateful. Here are some facts about Chapin: 1) He is a graduate of

Dependable, loyal and compassionate are three adjectives I’d use to describe John Hamilton. He is returning for the eighth year as Emcee of NCPSG’s Community Addiction Awareness Vigil. What I like about John is he blends his expertise of three plus decades in the prevention, treatment and recovery world with empathy for those who struggle–be they the loved ones themselves

I didn’t know the story of Reef Baker, of Greenwich, until his mom Laura reached out to me. He was a young man, full of love and empathy for others, who died of an overdose just after his 16th birthday. His characteristics included kindness towards others, a love of adventure, and cultivating friendships. These traits ring true to me when

I have been test driving recoveryeducation.com, a parent-focused website for families affected by addiction. The full name of this website tool is REAL, Recovery Education & Applied Learning. It’s the brainchild of New Canaan resident and REAL Founder & CEO Todd Lampert, who was inspired by a recovery journey in his own family. The Town of New Canaan has graciously

In late January, Francesca and I met with Brian Dolan, the new Director of SHU’s Collegiate Recovery Program (CRP), at the program office (4980 Park Avenue, Bridgeport). NCPSG has written about SHU’s program in the past, after it started up in 2019 with a big boost from Bill Mitchell of Mitchells of Westport. SHU’s CRP in 2019 was the “new

We thank all of you, for your past contributions to NCPSG. Again this year, we ask our community to think of NCPSG in their giving plans. While the physical toll of COVID has been reduced, the behavioral health of our community has NOT improved. Based on attendance and the stories at our support meetings, the number of loved ones who