BELFAST — Those in recovery face a tough and often perilous road en route to a life free from the chains of addiction, but some in Waldo County are getting support from an unexpected source — the Sheriff’s Office.

Community support meetings are held weekly, both in Belfast and at Two Bridges Regional Jail, in Wiscasset, where there is one meeting for men and another for women.

The weekly meetings began at the end of September 2018 with the Belfast community meetings taking place every Tuesday at 7 a.m. at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Belfast, at 37 Miller Street.

The meetings are a product of the Waldo County Recovery Committee, which was formed in the summer of 2018. The committee includes a number of community partners, including the Waldo County Sheriff’s Office, Volunteers of America, Seaport Family Health Center, the Restorative Justice Project of the Mid-coast, Greater Bay Ministerium, and Maine Adult Community Corrections.

They run for roughly one hour and are facilitated by John Fitzgerald, who is the substance abuse counselor for the Waldo County Sheriff’s Office.

“Waldo County Recovery Committee supports a vibrant community by providing a deeper understanding of substance use and mental illness, reducing stigma, improving access to treatment, and supporting families and those impacted by substance use,” says the group’s mission statement. “We favor efforts to divert people with substance use disorder and mental illness from the criminal justice system to medical treatment and community support. The [WCRC] measure success in improved quality of life in individuals and positive changes in the community.”

Waldo County Sheriff’s Office Chief Deputy Jason Trundy, who is a member of the Recovery Committee, said the meetings held in the Belfast community (not including Reentry Center meetings) include six to 14 participants, plus providers, and are meeting the original visions of what he hoped they would accomplish.

“I would say we’ve accomplished all of that and probably some more,” he said.

Though the number of attendees fluctuates, Trundy said a variety of people attend.

“We’ve had people coming because they were in recovery, and we had somebody come because they’ve lost a loved one to overdose. We had somebody come because they were looking for support not to go into substance abuse again. We’ve had people who’ve had family and friends of people in addiction looking for support.... To watch those folks interact with each other, talk from their experience, and offer support and advice to other folks — it’s been a pretty amazing thing.”

Providers who attend the meetings include representatives from the WSO, Probation and Parole, Restorative Justice, and Dr. Timothy Hughes, of Seaport Community Health.

“I think what’s special about this meeting is that there’s no rules around it,” said Robyn Goff, who is the program manager for Volunteers Of America at the Reentry Center. “It’s not 12-step based, you don’t have to be an alcoholic, you don’t have to be an addict, you don’t have to have a higher power, you don’t have to get a sponsor, and you don’t have to work these steps. I fully support the 12-step community and I’ve seen it work in so many people’s lives, but I think it can be early in recovery a deterrent to people. Like, ‘oh if I go here I’m going to have to believe in God or get a sponsor,’ so I think that’s what's special about this meeting is that it’s just a place for the community to come together and learn and talk about addiction.”

When asked about the meetings’ reception at Two Bridges Regional Jail, Trundy said. “[Fitzgerald] has told me that at first there was a little apprehension, you know, the population were kind of like, ‘what is this?’ so it took them a little while to explain to folks why he was there and what he was trying to do and what the [WSO] were trying to do. He’s told me that once it sunk in with the folks that were attending the meeting, a lot of them were very surprised that the [WSO] had taken that approach, but yes, very pleased and I think it’s been fruitful.”

He said that while he doesn’t inject himself into the day-to-day operations of the meetings, which are all run by Fitzgerald, he has heard that they are going well.

“He’s been successful in building relationships with some of these folks and starting the process of getting them connected to treatment when they get out... I don’t know that [the inmates] are down there singing our praises, necessarily,” he said with a laugh, “but it’s doing exactly what we wanted it to do. For those people that are interested in seeking treatment and recovery, he’s been able to start making those connections. That was exactly what we were looking for.”

“We want to spread the word so that everybody that could benefit knows that the meetings are happening, and can come,” Trundy said.

Erica Thoms can be reached at news@penbaypilot.com