Good morning -

As Governor Charlie Baker, Lt. Governor Karyn Polito, and Massachusetts Health & Human Services Secretary Marylou Sudders's tenures come to a close, we cannot help but reflect and be grateful for how they kept former Governor Deval Patrick's commitment to expanding access to treatment and recovery services in Franklin County and the North Quabbin Region.

With their collective support, it was possible for hundreds of treatment beds and other addiction services to be funded and available in our rural region. We had no treatment beds when the Opioid Task Force started its work in 2013.

We commend their steady leadership and recognition of addiction as a disease, which allowed important investments to be made in data infrastructure, treatment and recovery beds, peer recovery centers, harm reduction efforts, access to Narcan and other forms of medication-assisted recovery, and more.

We wish them all well in their next chapter and express our gratitude for their enduring support of our life-saving efforts.

Left to right: Former Representative Steve Kulik, Register and OTF Co-Chair John F. Merrigan, and NWDA and OTF Co-Chair David E. Sullivan distributing turkeys at Montague Catholic Social Ministries on November 23, 2016. Image: Opioid Task Force

On another note, we were saddened to hear about former legislator and colleague, Representative Steve Kulik's death this past Sunday. Steve was a great friend and champion of the Opioid Task Force since our earliest days. He readily saw what we were up against and how important state funding would be to our quest to reduce opioid-related deaths. His advocacy helped us secure earmarked funds to hire professional staff and organize the community to identify a range of prevention, intervention, treatment, and recovery strategies. He retired in 2018 after a long and distinguished career in public service. His wisdom and insights will live on in numerous legislative acts and programs that reflected his passion for a more equitable and compassionate society. He will be sorely missed. We offer our sincere condolences to his family, friends, and colleagues during this difficult time.

Steve's passing is a poignant reminder of how fleeting our time on Earth can be. So, we hope this upcoming holiday season will be filled with joy and restoration for you, your family, friends, and colleagues. We look forward to working with you next year to reduce opioid and heroin addiction, prevent overdose deaths and improve the quality of life in our community.

Sincerely,