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Covering Milford, Syracuse & North Webster, Indiana
Leaps and Bounds
Wednesday, March 2, 2022
Page 6 One Nation Under God www.the-papers.com
Kosciusko County in line for share of opioid settlement
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%\ /($+ 6$1'(5 6WDII :ULWHU Kosciusko County Attorney Ed Ormsby provided an update on the county’s efforts to receive a share of money from a settlement with several companies connected to the opioid crisis. Ormsby outlined how the state and local communities will share the money during a meeting of the county commissioners Tuesday, March 1, at the Kosciusko County Courthouse. The county agreed to opt in to the settlement in December, in which one pharmaceutical manufacturer, Janssen Pharmaceuticals, via its parent company Johnson & Johnson, and three distributors, AmerisourceBergen, Cardinal Health and McKesson, are paying a total of $26 billion for their roles in the opioid crisis. The four companies finalized the national settlement Friday, Feb. 25. It will still take time be-
fore the county receives its share, said Ormsby. “The defendants will start releasing funds to a national administrator on April 2, 2022, and money will start flowing to state and local governments in the second quarter of 2022,” he said. “There are splits that are specified in the settlement agreement. In Indiana, the current settlement structure splits the funds into several segments amounting to a 50-50 split between state and local communities. “The first 30% of the settlement funds can be used however local communities and the state want to use those funds. Of that 30% amount, half goes to local communities and half goes to the state,” continued Ormsby. “Second, the other 70% is designated for opioid abatement efforts among communities. State leaders decide how to allocate half that amount and the other 35%, local governments Continued on page 2
Substance abuse forum highlights community-based solutions On Thursday, Feb. 24, North Webster Church of God hosted a Kosciusko County Substance Abuse Forum led by Kosciusko County Sheriff Kyle Dukes along with other law enforcement officers, recovery specialists and recovering addicts who highlighted their own struggles, as well as the community formed to assist them in their recovery. Throughout the evening, the speakers emphasized the need for treatment and recovery services to break the cycle of addiction and incarceration, citing the success of Kosciusko County Jail Chemical Addiction Program as a prime example of how community-based services and law enforcement can work together. “Something special is happening in Kosciusko County,” said Dukes, who described recently meeting with representatives of two local businesses interested in ending policies of not hiring individuals with felony convictions. “We’ve got to do it as a team.”
Following Dukes’ introduction, two speakers related their stories of personal recovery. Travis Henson grew up with a father who was an addict. “I’ve felt the effects of addiction throughout my life,” he said. Following his own introduction to drugs in his teenage years, Henson described how his own addiction “destroyed everything,” including his marriage of 10 years, and “robbed me of my ability to be a father.” Henson explained how the realization he was continuing the cycle started by his own father came after his most recent arrest, when he said, “Something has to change.” Henson was also inspired by an older brother who graduated from JCAP, after seeing “the hope he had in his eyes.” He called his decision to read the Bible and apply to enter JCAP as “the best decision I ever made.” Henson credited JCAP and the community support from Celebrate
Recovery and his church family for his nine months of sobriety. Kacynda Northrup’s story was similar to Henson’s, as she, too, is the child of addicted parents who started using meth regularly in her teens. Northrup was handpicked for JCAP “after years of life in institutions,” and has found success with Celebrate Recovery, which she attends weekly. Like Henson, Northrup stressed the importance of community in her recovery, which has also helped her learn life skills such as paying bills, which, she explained, had “never been my normal.” Forum attendees then heard from Fort Wayne Police Department Detective Mark Gerardot who, along with his service working undercover, holds a degree in biology from Purdue University. Gerardot described Fort Wayne as a distribution point for drug cartels moving increasing amounts of the
lethal opioid fentanyl from China into the United States. His department, he said, is seeing “dead bodies every day,” resulting from this “pill explosion,” which has largely replaced heroin and is up to 30 times more powerful. According to Gerardot, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported well over 100,000 deaths nationally from overdoses since 2019. First responders, he explained, have developed a kind of gallows humor in response to burnout from so much death. “But we’re changing that idea,” he said, “Every human being is worth saving.” He went on to describe his own niece who died as a result of sepsis from dirty needles. “We’re all losing people,” he said. “The way we are doing business is not solving the problem,” Gerardot stated, referring to “traditionalized” policing, which focuses on Continued on page 2
Milford Council moves ahead with annexation and paving projects %\ '$9,' +$=/(',1( 6WDII :ULWHU Milford Town Council held a special meeting Monday, Feb. 28, which included the opening of sealed bids for the 2022 Community Crossing Matching Grant street paving project. Members also approved an updated annexation ordinance adding adjacent, uninhabited property to the annexation of phase three of North Park subdivision located east of the Milford town limits. The council received only one bid for the 2022 paving proj-
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ect. Phend and Brown’s bid of $328,753.80 is below the project cost estimate of $342,274. Members voted to accept the bid pending review. The project must be submitted to Indiana Department of Transportation by March 3. Milford’s Community Crossing project includes resurfacing and ADA ramps on the following streets: First Street from SR 15 to East Street, then north to Catherine; Smith and Williams streets; Fourth Street from Shafer to Main streets. The council also voted on a new annexation ordinance. In
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addition to phase three of the North Park subdivision, an adjacent 20.729 acre property to the east under the name of Zimmerman has also requested annexation by the town of Milford. The council voted to commence annexation proceedings for the Zimmerman property, which necessitates a revised fiscal plan and schedule for informational meetings and hearings. The new fiscal plan for the annexation of both properties will likely by voted on at the council’s March 14 meeting. If accepted, it will then be availContinued on page 2
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Drop 2 Stop Box newly installed in Syracuse, more coming to county %\ '(% 3$77(5621 (GLWRU ,Q &KLHI Syracuse Police Department is the newest location for the 525 Foundation Drop 2 Stop drop boxes. Kosciusko County Sheriff’s Department and Martin’s Supermarket also have the Drop 2 boxes available. Claypool and Warsaw police departments will also be getting the new boxes.
While the police department has had a drug drop box for the past nine years, age, deterioration and safety prompted a replacement. “It’s at the same place and location,” said Jim Layne, Syracuse Police chief. “Anyone with expired or a change in medication can dispose of their medication in a safe and secure way to keep it out of the reach of their children or grandchildren,” said Continued on page 2
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