{"id":32787,"date":"2022-05-24T12:14:41","date_gmt":"2022-05-24T16:14:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/?p=32787"},"modified":"2022-05-24T12:14:41","modified_gmt":"2022-05-24T16:14:41","slug":"genesee-orleans-counties-gcasa-recognizes-board-staff-scholars-friends","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/2022\/05\/24\/genesee-orleans-counties-gcasa-recognizes-board-staff-scholars-friends\/","title":{"rendered":"GENESEE\/ORLEANS COUNTIES\/GCASA recognizes board, staff, scholars, friends"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

By Mike Pettinella
GCASA Publicist<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Understanding the importance of enlisting all segments of the community to fight the scourge of substance use disorder, Genesee\/Orleans Council on Alcoholism and Substance Abuse leaders on Monday afternoon recognized its board of directors, staff, scholarship recipients and \u201cfriends\u201d at the nonprofit agency\u2019s annual meeting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

About 80 people attended the luncheon meeting at Terry Hills Restaurant.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
GCASA \u2018FRIENDS\u2019:\u00a0<\/strong>Joy Mercer, left, and Charlotte Crawford received Friends of GCASA awards on Monday at the agency\u2019s annual meeting at Terry Hills Restaurant (provided photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Four individuals and one business were presented with Friends of GCASA awards:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

— Mickey Edwards, superintendent of Albion Central School (and former superintendent at Byron-Bergen Central School), Friend of GCASA Prevention;<\/p>\n\n\n\n

— One World Projects, Harvester Avenue, Batavia, Friend of GCASA Residential Services;<\/p>\n\n\n\n

— Hon. Sanford A. Church, judge for the Orleans County Court Multi-Bench in the Eighth Judicial District of New York (and former Orleans County public defender), Friend of GCASA Treatment;<\/p>\n\n\n\n

— Joy Mercer of Corfu, licensed mental health counselor, Friend of GCASA Treatment;<\/p>\n\n\n\n

— Charlotte Crawford of Batavia, R.N., interim executive director at Crossroads House and retired chief executive officer at Lake Plains Community Care Network, Friend of GCASA Recovery.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
GCASA SCHOLARS:\u00a0<\/strong>Recipients of GCASA Foundation Scholarships are, from left, Sarah Volpe, Kendra Lennon and Samantha Kabel (provided photo)
\u00a0<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Four students each received $1,000 GCASA Foundation Scholarships as a result of their enrollment in fields related to substance abuse prevention\/treatment:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

— Kendra Lonnen, a 2022 graduate of Lyndonville Central School, who will be attending Genesee Community College to study Human Resources, with a goal of becoming a social worker;<\/p>\n\n\n\n

— Sarah Volpe, a 2022 graduate of Elba Central School, who also will receive an associate\u2019s degree in General Studies from GCC this summer. She will be attending Daemen University in the fall with direct entry into the Physician Assistant program.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

— Samantha Kabel, a 2022 graduate of Alexander Central School, who also will be attending Daemen University in the fall to study Pre-Medicine Biology;<\/p>\n\n\n\n

— Tess Pettit, a 2019 graduate of Albion Central School, who is graduating from Houghton College with a bachelor\u2019s degree in Psychology.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt is our honor and privilege to recognize the people that support the work that we do here at GCASA, and to be able to assist in the education of those who are choosing to pursue careers that ultimately will make a positive difference in the lives of so many of our neighbors,\u201d GCASA Chief Executive Officer John Bennett said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bennett underscored the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic upon substance use disorder prevention and treatment, noting a remarkable spike in anxiety, depression and other mental health problems among those dealing with drug and alcohol issues.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAt the same time,\u201d he said, filling vacancies for mental health and substance use disorder professionals has become a huge concern. The increase in individuals leaving and the lack of individuals coming into the workforce have created even more problems for a system that has been hit hard by the pandemic.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He said that the profession is bouncing back to some extent, but \u201cthe challenge of the next year or two is to figure out what is the new normal.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Calling his staff \u201cthe heart and soul of this organization,\u201d Bennett thanked GCASA employees for \u201cpersevering and keeping our doors open over the past two years.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYou are truly amazing and I and the board of directors appreciate you more than you can imagine,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Outgoing Board President Virginia Taylor, Ph.D., presided over the election of new board members and the slate of officers. Bennett commended Taylor, a Higher Education Administration consultant, for her dedication and passion to the GCASA mission during her six years as a board member.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Elected to three-year terms were Jerry Ader, Genesee County public defender; Don Allport, Orleans County legislator; Gary Graber, Darien Town justice; Gretchen Rosales, superintendent at Elba Central School; Jennifer Wakefield, GCC Foundation director of Development & Alumni Affairs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Officers elected were Tim Batzel, president, Alexander Central business administrator; Katie Cotter, vice president, specialist with WNY Independent Living, and Fred Rarick, secretary-treasurer, Batavia attorney.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 2021, GCASA provided 812 comprehensive substance use disorder evaluations through its outpatient treatment services, with 249 admitted to the Batavia Outpatient Clinic, 191 admitted to the Albion Outpatient Clinic, and 124 admitted to the Opioid Treatment Program.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Forty-three individuals were admitted to the Atwater Community Residence in Batavia, with another 18 admitted into supportive living.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

GCASA\u2019s Prevention educators served 28,938 youth and adults in various programs, while the Genesee-Orleans-Wyoming Opioid Task Force membership stands at 441.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Recovery Station on Clinton Street Road in Batavia served 477 individuals, hosting activities five to six days per week throughout the year, while Employee Assistance Program counselors provided services to 46 people.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Mike PettinellaGCASA Publicist Understanding the importance of enlisting all segments of the community to fight the scourge of substance use disorder, Genesee\/Orleans Council on Alcoholism and Substance Abuse leaders on Monday afternoon recognized its board of directors, staff, scholarship recipients and \u201cfriends\u201d at the nonprofit agency\u2019s annual meeting. About \u2026<\/p>\n

Continue reading<\/i><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":32789,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_seo_schema_type":"","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[23,6],"tags":[2481],"class_list":["post-32787","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-genesee-county","category-orleans-county","tag-gcasa"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p8eTP4-8wP","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":42759,"url":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/2023\/05\/25\/genesee-orleans-counties-scholarship-recipients-friends-honored-at-gcasa-gathering\/","url_meta":{"origin":32787,"position":0},"title":"GENESEE\/ORLEANS COUNTIES\/Scholarship recipients, \u2018friends\u2019 honored at GCASA gathering","author":"aka","date":"May 25, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"GCASA \u2018FRIENDS\u2019:\u00a0Receiving \u201cFriends of GCASA\u201d awards for 2023 are, seated from left, Heather Jackson, Jay Balduf, Megan Boring; standing, Patrick Cecere, Pam McCarthy, Scott Wooten, Matt Prawel, Lt. Bob Tedford.(provided photo) By Mike PettinellaGCASA Publicist Genesee\/Orleans Council on Alcoholism and Substance Abuse officials on Wednesday afternoon honored six \u201cfriends\u201d of\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Genesee County"","block_context":{"text":"Genesee County","link":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/category\/genesee-county\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/gcasa-scholarship-2023.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/gcasa-scholarship-2023.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/gcasa-scholarship-2023.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/gcasa-scholarship-2023.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":25399,"url":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/2021\/05\/20\/genesee-orleans-gcasa-foundation-awards-four-scholarships-recognizes-individuals-agencies-as-friends\/","url_meta":{"origin":32787,"position":1},"title":"GENESEE\/ORLEANS\/GCASA Foundation awards four scholarships, recognizes individuals, agencies as \u2018Friends\u2019","author":"aka","date":"May 20, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Press release Two senior class members from Charles D\u2019Amico High School in Albion and one from Pavilion Central School were honored with Genesee\/Orleans Council on Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Foundation scholarships today during the organization\u2019s annual meeting via Zoom videoconferencing. Melissa Robinson and Madelin Tabor of Albion and Madison Maniace\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Genesee County"","block_context":{"text":"Genesee County","link":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/category\/genesee-county\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/videonewsservice.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/madelin-tabor-photo1.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":38462,"url":"https:\/\/videonewsservice.net\/index.php\/2022\/12\/16\/genesee-county-gcasa-pays-tribute-to-dr-baker-presents-longevity-awards\/","url_meta":{"origin":32787,"position":2},"title":"GENESEE COUNTY\/GCASA pays tribute to Dr. Baker; presents longevity awards","author":"aka","date":"December 16, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"GCASA honored Dr. Bruce Baker and presented longevity awards at its annual holiday luncheon at Terry Hills Restaurant. Seated from left are Danielle Ludeke, Dr. Baker, Kathy Hodgins; standing, Rosalie Mangino-Crandall, Carol Nicometo, JoAnn Ryan, Diane Klos, Charlene Grimm, Lori Brade, Jordan Smart, Linda Ackley. 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