FORT KENT, Maine — People in the St. John Valley with substance use disorders face additional challenges because the region is remote. The nearest recovery center is in Caribou, about an hour’s drive. And the nearest methadone clinic is in Presque Isle, about an hour and a half away.
A group of residents wants to see this change and is working toward establishing a recovery center in Fort Kent.
Beginning at 11 a.m., Sunday, Oct. 8, they will host an event at the Aroostook Beef Company at 96 Market Street in Fort Kent featuring several speakers from the recovery community along with music, food, and an indoor yard sale.
Claire Pelletier, the lead organizer of the event, said it is being held to help her childhood best friend, Danielle Forino, set up a recovery center in the community.
Forino lost her son, Michael, to an overdose two months ago. He was living in a sober house in Virginia. Forino said he was in Virginia because he did not have immediate access to a similar resource in the area.
“In the three years since Michael opened up to me about his addiction, there have been numerous roadblocks and delays,” she said. “It’s often a three-week waiting list or you’re calling phone numbers and you’re just not getting anywhere.”
Having spoken with others in recovery, Forino said many of them said the most important thing is having a place to go or someone with whom to talk.
Forino, who owns Aroostook Real Estate in Fort Kent, said she was looking at a property in the Fort Kent area that could work as a recovery center. She isn’t ready to disclose the location until she makes sure the property meets all the necessary requirements for a recovery center. If it does not meet the requirements, she will need to find another property.
She said Pelletier quickly organized the upcoming fund-raising event.
“I was literally just talking to her, probably within the week after Michael had passed. And I think I had mentioned to her that there was a house that I thought would work great for a sober house, and she just kind of took off with doing an event,” Forino said.
About half a dozen people are working together to help make the recovery center a reality. Pelletier said the recovery center would ideally provide services to anyone in need of recovery resources.
The center would host numerous weekly meetings for groups such as Narcotics Anonymous, Alcoholics Anonymous, as well as Nar-Anon, which is for friends and family affected by another’s addiction. Pelletier said volunteer staff would ideally be on call 24 hours a day in case anyone is in need, and also arrange for transportation to help people obtain methadone or suboxone. It would also connect people with resources such as ACAP to help them transition into jobs or training programs.
“The main goal is to help those who are in recovery and [others affected],” Pelletier said. “And to help those who are not in recovery yet get to the next step.”
