June 8 - 14, 2013: Recovery Coach Training From June 8 - 14, 2013, City of Angels will offer Recovery Coach training for anyone interested in serving as a guide or mentor to people in recovery or seeking recovery. This week-long, 30-hour training class is invaluable for anyone living or working with addiction sufferers including counselors, health care professionals, teachers, friends and family.  COA's Recovery Coach training is identical to the training developed by the Connecticut Community for Addiction Recovery (CCAR) and upon completion, participants will be certified as a CCAR Recovery Coach.  There is one big difference between the COA and CCAR programs, however: the COA training costs about half the price of the CCAR training. Early registration rates will be in effect for the COA Recovery Coach Academy for a limited time until seats are full, so if you are interested in this program, please register online as soon as you can. The January class was full with 30 participants. For more details about COA Recovery Coach training, or to register, click here. Kevin Meara Interview on Good Samaritan Law On Sunday, April 21 at 9:30 am and 7:00 pm, and Tuesday, April 23 at 11:30 pm, City of Angels Executive Advisory Committee Chairman Kevin Meara will appear on NJTV's Due Process to talk about the Good Samaritan Emergency Response Act.  The act, which was vetoed by Governor Christie last October, is designed to help prevent drug overdoses by providing immunity from prosecution for people who seek medical assistance for someone experiencing an overdose. Now, many drug users are afraid to call 911 on behalf of a friend or acquaintance for fear of being arrested themselves. At least 10 other states have passed similar legislation and many in the addiction community believe that these laws save lives. As the New Jersey bill overwhelmingly passed in the State Legislature last year and policy research is ongoing, it is possible that the law could still be enacted. If you miss Kevin's appearance on NJTV, you can watch the show online after it airs by clicking here.   Due Process, a production of Rutgers School of Law-Newark and the Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy, is a critically acclaimed weekly series on law and justice issues.  COA Speaking Engagements This month, representatives from COA spoke at Lawrence High School in Lawrenceville, NJ about drug abuse. On April 8 and 10, Kevin, Redneck, Michelle and John told their stories to several junior health classes and on April 15, they returned to speak to faculty. Because all have lived through drug addiction or the addiction of a loved one, their testimonies hit home: shortly afterward, several students called COA asking for help for themselves or a friend. To educate the public about this disease and recovery resources, COA regularly speaks about addiction at schools, community groups and events. All speaking engagements are free of charge. To inquire about COA speakers, email CityofAngelsNJ@hotmail.com.

Tidbits   COA hosts support group meetings for both addiction sufferers and their families every day of the week at the Dwier Center (392 Church Street, Groveville, NJ). This includes 12-step meetings, a new Thursday night veteran's support group, Saturday night self-injury support group, Sunday night Spirituality Meeting, and the popular Sunday morning family support group, The Breakfast Club. To check out our online calendar, click here.     For directions to the Dwier Center, click here.      The COA website now offers an Addiction News Feed with the latest studies, reports, new and other info on addiction. It's updated in real time with the top 30 articles. To read the feed, click here.  New videos are up on the COA YouTube channel. To watch, click here.      Join COA's Pinterest community! To visit the boards, click here.          Keep current on COA activites - join the COA group on Facebook!  COA news is posted first on Facebook, and this page often has photos not available elsewhere. Click here to visit.   City of Angels NJ, Inc. is a non-profit organization that provides many services to addicts and their families including interventions, recovery support, Family Program, counseling services and more. All of our services are provided at no charge.