Breaking Ground

25 October 2004

The golden shovels and the local dignitaries were in evidence on Monday, October 25, as ground was broken for the new Central New York Services Single Room Occupancy structure, which will be known as Gateway House.

On hand  were County Executive Nick Pirro,  Fernando Ortiz, Commissioner of Community Development for the City of Syracuse, David Michael, Commissioner of Economic Development for the City of Syracuse, Joseph Geglia, President of the Board of Directors of Central New York Services, Inc., Jeanie Straussman, Central New York Field Office of the Office of Mental Health, and Peddie McLean of the Southwest Gateway Development Corporation, as well as CNYS Executive Director, John Warren.

Although the morning was overcast, those in attendance were able to catch a glimpse of the future that this building represents for the 28 people who will occupy it when it is completed.

The Ribbon Is Cut!!!

On October 27, 2005 the ribbon was cut to signify the completion of the Gateway House Single Room Occupancy.

Speakers from all levels of government, and the Mental Health community gathered to celebrate the opening of Central New York Services, Inc.'s newest residential site, the Gateway House. The ribbon-cutting ceremony, which opened with comments from Frank Servadio, representing CNY Services' Board of Directors, (see right). brought to a culmination the ten months of actual construction since the ground-breaking ceremony in November of 2004, as well as countless more days of planning and preparation.

County Executive Nicholas Pirro (left), among others, spoke of the vital need for such facilities in the Central New York area, and congratulated Executive Director John Warren and his staff for their work on behalf of the area's underserved population.

Spirits were high in spite of the chilly overcast day, which mirrored the weather encountered eleven months earlier when many of the same people gathered to mark the ground-breaking.

The ceremony was followed by an Open House for the community, allowing interested persons to tour the facility. Tours included the first floor, which houses the administrative offices, a residents lounge, the dining room and and other service areas, and one of the residential floors, which features bedrooms, lounges, and lavatory facilities.

All twenty-four of the facility's beds have been assigned, and the residents will begin moving into Gateway within the next few weeks.

Joyce’s Call

 BY:   Kimberly M. Aichner, LCSW

Another day waking up in a strange place, with strange people.  Once again waking up strung out from the night before.  Joyce didn’t know where home was anymore.  She felt desperate for her next hit of crack.  Each day was beginning to look like the last, at least the parts she could remember.

As she struggled to just move, the physical, emotional and spiritual pain exploded within her.  She knew that she could not continue to survive like this.  She lied there trying to decide if today was a good day to live or die.  Each seemed like too much effort.

 She tried to remember the last time she felt anything other than pain.  She recalled a time in her past when she had people who cared about her and amazingly she cared about herself.  That time had been during one of her treatment experiences. Joyce longed for that time and those feelings, almost as much as she longed for her next hit of crack. 

 She made a pact with herself.  If she got out of this house without finding crack, she would make one phone call for help.  If help were available, she would take it.  If not, she would find more crack.  Either way, it didn’t matter because everything had become blended with the daily pain.  She might as well give it one chance. 

 Joyce did make it out.  As a matter of fact, she made it all the way out of the nightmare her life had become.  She made that call like she promised herself she would do.  She was told to come right in.  Just to walk-in and she would be seen by a counselor.  She did walk-in and has been clean and sober since that day.

 CNY Services helped her get into detox and admitted her to outpatient treatment services immediately following.  She began attending the integrated chemical dependency and mental health program as recommended.  She was not surprised when the psychiatrist discussed bi-polar disorder with her.  She had been having problems with her emotions since she was a teenager.  She was able to focus on her whole self while there, in one program with one counselor. 

It is 18 months later and she is graduating from program.  She says that walk-in assistance saved her life that day.  She has sober social supports now.  She has a part-time job and a vocational counselor supporting her in her employment.  She has her own apartment.  She is now a peer mentor and is proud to be helping other people.   

Most important of all, she now has her freedom and the serenity she longed for while laying in that crack house she woke up in 18 months ago.  Joyce made a call and she chose life.

Campaign for Mental Health Housing Rally, Albany, NY.
January 23, 2007

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