Latest news with #PortageAtlantic
CTV News
a day ago
- Health
- CTV News
‘We're here to support you': Youth treatment facility opens Moncton office
Downtown Moncton is a little over an hour's drive from a youth rehabilitation treatment centre near Sussex, but for those in need of help it can feel like it's a world away. Portage Atlantic is located in picturesque Cassidy Lake and since 1996, staff there have been helping youth between the ages of 14 and 21 struggling with substance use disorder. The facility has 64 beds and the rehabilitation programs usually last between three to six months. Now, there's a satellite program in Moncton that doesn't require the same commitment as the live-in treatment centre located in a rural area. 'We've learned that through data collection that some of the youth who come to Portage feel that they could be better prepared for residential live-in treatment,' said Carol Tracey, the director of Corporate Development at Portage Atlantic. The new Moncton Community Care Program located in the Community Peace Centre on Church Street got up and running on Monday. The outreach program supports youth in the area who are facing challenges with substance use and mental health issues. It also educates them on what they will experience at the Portage live-in treatment 'What we're trying to do is reach youth who otherwise we haven't been able to reach. Youth who are treatment resistant or who are on the fence about coming to treatment,' said Tracey. Suzanne Boucher is a youth counsellor for the Portage Community Care Program and said it's a no commitment, non-judgement service being provided in the heart of the city. 'It's how can we help you. Let's see if we can guide you in the right direction,' said Boucher. Although only a few days old, the program is gaining traction, Boucher said, and a few people have already attended drop-in services open to both youth and their parents. Official opening Staff at the new Portage Atlantic facility opening in Moncton. (Source: Portage Atlantic) 'I think that it's going to be a big asset to the community. There's a lot of youth out there that need help, that want help, they just don't know where to go and they're scared to make that commitment,' said Boucher. 'We're here to support you.' Boucher said agreeing to get live-in treatment at the main facility is a big commitment that scares a lot of youth. 'There's a big fear of leaving your friends behind, changing your life and I think that coming here they're going to know what to expect when they're going to Cassidy Lake. There's more of a preparation,' said Boucher. Casandra Power is also a counsellor with Portage and works alongside Boucher. Power said Moncton has become a hub for many outreach services and believes other cities in the Maritimes see it that way as well. 'We do have resources here that other cities don't. We have seen the population of those who are homeless and those who are precariously housed and those who are struggling with substance use disorder get younger,' said Power. There's been a good deal of interest in the program already, according to Power. 'A lot of parents, a lot of moms, a lot of dads and a lot of youth that are interested in the program,' said Power. 'It's gained a lot more traction a lot more faster than we anticipated, which I think shows the need for it in our city.' Tracey said there's no commitment for coming to the satellite office in Moncton for a visit. 'If you just want to talk, get a little bit of guidance, know what your options are we can refer you to other programs in the city as well,' said Tracey. 'It's really a safe place for you to go and figure things out in regards to your substance use.' More details about Portage's Moncton Community Care Program and the schedule for drop-ins can be found here. Portage Atlantic Portage Atlantic opened its new outreach youth facility in Moncton. (Source: Portage Atlantic) For more New Brunswick news, visit our dedicated provincial page.
CBC
6 days ago
- Health
- CBC
Portage opens satellite centre in downtown Moncton to help youth with drug addiction
A new centre to help young people suffering from drug addiction has officially opened in downtown Moncton. Portage Atlantic — a non-profit that helps youth with addictions — already operates a live-in centre near Sussex, on the shore of Cassidy Lake. On Friday morning, the organization announced its new satellite office in downtown Moncton, which will open its doors on July 28 for youth aged 14 to 21. The new satellite office on Church Street will operate five days a week and is designed to help young people explore whether residential treatment is for them. It's also intended to provide a smoother transition into the Cassidy Lake program. "Youth who have completed the program at Cassidy Lake prepare an exit plan ... and make suggestions about what they feel could be done better," said Carol Tracey, director of development for Portage Atlantic. She said the April 2024 survey revealed that 21 per cent of them wished they had been better prepared for the program before committing to it. Tracey said the new satellite office will allow youth seeking help to experience the first two weeks of what is offered at the live-in facility at Cassidy Lake. Those deemed eligible for the program will be transferred, while the others will be paired with resources that serve them better, she said. "We landed on Moncton because of the fact that we have an increased number of people from this region who are looking for help." Tracey was not able to provide a statistic about the increase in demand. She said the new centre is a walk-in model with no commitments. WATCH | 'No stigma, no judgment,' Portage director says of new program: New program lets youth learn about life in addictions centre before they go 16 minutes ago Portage Atlantic is running a new program in Moncton to teach potential clients what to expect of life at its live-in addictions centre at Cassidy Lake. Those visiting will learn about the residential program's expectations, what items they can bring with them, the program's school system and more, she said. Portage Atlantic's Cassidy Lake facility offers a maximum of 64 beds, she said. "Youth who are prepared to go right away, they can go that route." "There's other youth that maybe are unsure. This is a good program for them to figure out if rehab, live-in rehab, is what they're looking for," said Tracey. Rob McKee, New Brunswick's minister responsible for addictions and mental health services, said there's a demand for the service in the province's major centres. "It's very, you know, alarming when you see youth in those situations of crisis," he said. Suzanne Boucher has worked as a counsellor with Portage Atlantic for the last eight years. She went through the program at Cassidy Lake in 2005 and then through their adult program in Quebec in 2016, before starting to work for the organization. Boucher said the motivation to join the live-in program can waver for many through the first two weeks. She said the first two weeks are full of workshops to help identify fears, remove anxiety and get the youth comfortable by answering their questions and concerns. It also includes a tour of the Cassidy Lake facility to allow them to experience the environment, she said. "It's a therapeutic community, so the teenagers in therapy ... they're helping each other, they have responsibilities, they're going through the day-to-day and the staff are there to really guide them."
CBC
6 days ago
- Health
- CBC
New program lets youth learn about life in addictions centre before they go
Portage Atlantic is running a new program in Moncton to teach potential clients what to expect of life at its live-in addictions centre at Cassidy Lake.
CBC
28-05-2025
- General
- CBC
Recovering addict offers support to teens on the same path he once took
Social Sharing To Tim Durling, the time spent in his shop in Saint-Antoine chiselling used pallets into play structures for children is more than just a way to pay the bills. It's what saved him from a life derailed by addiction. "I probably spend too much time here, but it's what was created as my safety blanket," he said, covered in a layer of sawdust and sitting in front of a wooden playhouse and plane. A little more than 10 years ago, Durling was in the throes of drug addiction, on the run from the police, and separated from his three children. What began as a hobby to keep him busy as he began his recovery became the turning point to a better life. He created Pallet Works NB, which is now busier than ever. A weekly support group he started for teens in Moncton has been going strong for nine years. And he has reconnected with his own children. Durling has told his story countless times to students in local schools and through his work as an addictions counsellor. "I keep my reality very close to me," he said. "I don't forget the people I hurt . … I don't want to go down that road again." Eva LeBlanc first met Durling when she started a six-month recovery program at Portage Atlantic, a drug rehabilitation centre for young people. She was 16 when she was at Portage, southwest of Sussex, and would meet with Durling at least once a week. She said he was introduced to her as "the funny one" who could bring levity to an otherwise tense process. "It was like one of the first times that I had a genuine laugh being in my program, which really stuck with me." WATCH | 'I am an addictions counsellor, loving father and 10 years sober': Meet an N.B. man who found his way out of addiction by helping others 4 hours ago Duration 5:01 Tim Durling's path to recovery has led to a woodworking business and a support group for teens, where he offers what was missing in his own life. LeBlanc, now 19, still contacts Durling whenever she feels overwhelmed with her recovery. "I felt accepted by him," she said. "To be able to talk about it with someone that has been through it and that understands it to the core, really means a lot." LeBlanc is going to be four years sober in November. She still attends the weekly support group Durling offers for teens in Moncton every Tuesday at the North End YMCA in collaboration with the Anglophone East School District. For nine years, Durling has dedicated his time to helping teens like LeBlanc who are battling addiction or at risk of it. He calls the support group the Chase. "That's an opium expression, where you're chasing that high," Durling explained. "You're always chasing that dragon and you never catch it." Durling not only supports teens after they get sober, he also works to prevent them from falling into addiction. He knows that, as with many who face addiction, his story could have ended another way. Abuse at heart of addiction Growing up in Sussex, Durling said, he "came from a good family," played competitive hockey and had many friends through the sport. When he was nine years old, he said, he was sexually abused. "I had that trauma in the back of my head that just ate me up," he said. "It made me an aggressive person and made me a violent person. It just changed me." Durling said he came to terms much later in life with the fact that the abuse was the underlying cause of his addictive behaviour. It's what led to an alcohol addiction in his early teens, and a cocaine addiction in his early 20s that lasted into his 30s and 40s. He and his former wife owned a bar in Moncton for 13 years, which he said enabled his lifestyle. "It just became a playground for me … drug dealers, that's where they hung out, that's what they did," he said. "It went from a recreation to a necessity real quick." In the early 2000s, Durling went to a rehabilitation centre for the first time. His sobriety lasted about a month or two, he said, and then the cycle started again. In 2014, when he was 44, Durling hit what he considers rock bottom. He refers to it as his "summer of insanity." He was unemployed, and while he didn't consider himself homeless, he didn't have a permanent place to call home. "I had dug myself in such a hole," he said. "I had burned every bridge. No one believed anything I said. No one wanted me around and I don't blame them." After a short stint in the Southeast Regional Correctional Centre in Shediac, he ended up on the run from police for 30 days because of another charge. He isolated himself from his family and remembers his young son asking him to be part of his life. "My son was at an age where he was like, 'Dad, where are you?'" he recalled. "There was a side of me, too, that really wanted to be with my kids and wanted to be a better person." Determined to turn his life around, he moved in with his parents in Sussex. That's where he watched hours of YouTube tutorials, teaching himself to turn old pallets into coffee tables in his parents' garage. For months, he sold rustic-style creations online and eventually launched Pallet Works NB. Even though his daily life was headed in a better direction, he said, his addiction still wasn't. Providing support, then finding it for himself In 2015, Durling began volunteering at Portage Atlantic. That's when everything changed. "I really felt at home," he said. "When you hear a kid share about their own trauma, you're like, 'I can relate to that.'" Durling said it made him think about his own journey and how he hadn't dealt with issues related to his addiction. He confided in staff there, bought into the programs at Portage himself and got clean. "If I hadn't got that first shot, I don't know where my life would be right now because that was a life-changer," said Durling, who now lives in Shediac Cape with his girlfriend of four years. His Pallet Works shop has been moved to Saint-Antoine, about 34 kilometres northwest of Moncton. Eva LeBlanc describes Durling's support as "a comfort blanket" and said his transformation has led to the transformation of many, including herself. "He dedicates his life to helping people, which is something that you can't say about a lot of people. He is a lot of people's saviour, in a way."
