(Providence, RI) -- The Providence Center’s Anchor Recovery Community Center, along with local businesses, their employees, and residents of Block Island, recently partnered to make life-saving resources for people with substance use issues available on the island.

Anchor Recovery Community Center and Rhode Island’s 10,000 Chances Project are steadfast in their efforts to make critical resources readily available to Block Islanders, as well as tourists and visitors, who are struggling with substance use issues.

During their recent trip, certified peer recovery specialists provided Ballard’s Beach Resort and New Shoreham’s Island Free Library with Naloxboxes, 2 dozen naloxone kits, as well as opioid overdose prevention and rescue training. The effort is part of the Governor’s Overdose Prevention and Intervention Task Force, which launched Rhode Island’s 10,000 Chances Project, an initiative to reduce overdose deaths and save lives.

“We are very excited that the Anchor MORE (Mobile Outreach Recovery Efforts) team has been able to expand its outreach across the state. We are also grateful to have been awarded funding through the RI DOH’s Drug Overdose Prevention Program, the 10K chances grant. This funding has allowed us to expand our services to include meeting with local businesses to provide them with education, training, and naloxone kits which can be used to save the lives of patrons in crisis. The response from the local community leaders has been quite remarkable, and we are thankful,” said Holly Fitting VP of Addiction, Recovery, Residential Services, and Grants Administration, Anchor Recovery Community Center.

The Anchor Recovery Community Center, a division of The Providence Center, is staffed by recovery coaches and offers a supportive environment for individuals in all stages of recovery. At the Anchor Recovery Community Center, peer specialists and counselors strive to build the bridge to recovery in its centers, at local emergency rooms, and out in the community. Anchor offers programs for people who are trying to sustain their recovery, whether it be an addiction to alcohol or any other substance.

The Providence Center is available 24/7 for anyone who is experiencing a crisis, needs to talk to someone, or is feeling overwhelmed or especially anxious, by reaching someone on its Emergency Services line at (401) 274-7111. Counseling services are also available.

About The Providence Center

The Providence Center, a member of Care New England, is Rhode Island’s largest community behavioral health organization. Serving more than 20,000 people a year, TPC operates with an annual budget of $54 million and employs 800 staff. Through over 70 programs and wraparound services, TPC helps adults, adolescents, and children affected by psychiatric illnesses, emotional issues, and addiction by providing treatment and supportive services within a community setting. Its services are provided statewide through 25 locations in Providence, Cranston, Pawtucket, Warwick, Wakefield, and Wyoming.