The Sebastian County Opioid Task Force has been selected as a recipient of a $625,000 federal grant ($125,000 annually for five years) from the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) under the Drug-Free Communities (DFC) Support Program.
The Task Force will make a formal announcement regarding this award at 11:30 a.m. Oct. 15 at the Blue Lion, 101 North 2nd Street, in downtown Fort Smith.
This grant program, managed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), represents an opportunity to strengthen ongoing efforts in preventing youth substance use in our community. ONDCP’s DFC program is the nation’s leading effort to mobilize communities to prevent and reduce substance use among youth.
The DFC program provides federal grants to community coalitions to identify and respond to the issues unique to their community and change community conditions tied to youth substance use. With this grant, the Sebastian County Opioid Task Force will be able to continue building a safe, healthy, and drug-free community.
“Preventing substance use today is critical, so that today’s youth don’t become tomorrow’s overdose victims.
We are thrilled to award this grant because we know the outcomes DFC funded coalitions are capable of achieving when implementing evidence-based prevention strategies at the local level.” said Helen Hernandez, Administrator of the DFC Program at ONDCP.
“Through the DFC program, CDC is empowering community coalitions to implement local solutions to unique, local conditions, with the common goal of preventing youth substance use.” added Allison Arwady, MD, MPH, director of the National Center for Injury Prevention and Control at CDC.
“The Sebastian County Opioid Task Force is grateful for the support of and partnership with ONDCP and CDC,” said Sebastian County Sheriff and Task Force Chair Hobe Runion. “We are proud to share this mission and effort to prevent youth substance use and protect the well-being of our community.
This grant will allow us to better collaborate with parents, students and families in the 72901 zip code as we focus our collective expertise and resources on this critical issue. The DFC Award will allow the Sebastian County Opioid Task Force and our sector partners, Restore Hope/100 Families – Sebastian County, Arvest Bank, Fort Smith Media Group, Fort Smith Public Schools, Fort Smith Boys and Girls Clubs, Mercy Health System, the Fort Smith Police Department, Fort Smith Roundtable, Arkansas Representative Jay Richardson and Sebastian County Health Officer Dr. Bryan Clardy to focus resources on continuing efforts to prevent the use and abuse of THC and Opioids among area young people and better ensure a positive impact on our youth and community.”
