People For OPC’s in Rochester, NY

11/14/2025

If someone is going to use drugs today no matter what… do you want them to do it alone in a stairwell or in a room with medical staff and Narcan?

That’s really all an Overdose Prevention Center (OPC) is.

Not a party. Not a free-for-all.
A supervised space where people can use the substances they already have, with trained staff ready to respond if something goes wrong.

We do this in other areas of life all the time:
• Swimming pools have lifeguards
• Construction workers have harnesses
• Cars have seatbelts and airbags

We don’t say, “Well, if they’re going to make risky choices, let them suffer.”

We say, “They’re human. Let’s reduce the risk so they stay alive.”

OPCs do the same thing for people who use drugs. They don’t cause drug use, they make sure people survive it.

If we agree human life matters, this is the logical next step.

-People for OPCs in Rochester

11/10/2025

Some of the loudest “Christian” responses to what’s happening on our streets right now aren’t lining up with the actual Jesus part.

If your frustration about the opioid crisis is landing on the people suffering from it, or on the folks out here trying to keep them alive, that’s not righteous anger, that’s misplaced anger.

The people sleeping outside didn’t create the housing crisis.
The people using didn’t create the flood of fentanyl.
The outreach teams didn’t cut mental health funding.
None of them set policy.

But our elected officials did. Our systems did. That’s where the accountability belongs.

The Bible is full of people being met in the road, in their mess, in their sickness, not being blasted publicly because they were inconvenient. If your ministry needs a villain and you chose the unhoused person or the person who uses drugs… you picked the wrong enemy.

Be mad that the county doesn’t fund low-barrier shelter.
Be mad that treatment isn’t on demand.
Be mad that we keep criminalizing poverty instead of resourcing people.

But don’t be mad at people surviving.
And don’t be mad at the organizations doing the work you pray someone will do if it’s ever your family.

If we’re going to call ourselves a community of faith, our response should look like mercy, not noise.

- People for OPC’s in Rochester, NY 1:1

11/10/2025

If you’re an elected, a faith leader, a business owner, or just someone who cares about this city, we need you louder, braver, and public.

📣 Stand up for evidence based solutions.
🩹 Stand up for people who use drugs.
🏙️ Stand up for Rochester.

We lose neighbors we didn’t have to lose.

We have tools that work, OPCs, low-barrier shelter, on-demand treatment, harm reduction, real housing. The science is there. The models are there. The money is even there.

What we don’t always have is the political courage to use it.

Overdose is preventable. Political cowardice isn’t.

If you’re an elected, a faith leader, a business owner, or just someone who cares about this city, we need you louder, braver, and public.

📣 Stand up for evidence based solutions.
🩹 Stand up for people who use drugs.
🏙️ Stand up for Rochester.

10/31/2025

Inclusive harm reduction saves lives. Grateful for OnPoint NYC’s leadership in welcoming, affirming care.

As closes, learn why this model matters, and why Rochester needs it, too.

OnPoint NYC owes its existence to LGBTQ+ and Black pioneers and activists. As we celebrate Pride Month and Juneteenth this June, we’d like to acknowledge and honor our history.

09/13/2025

I just read this article: “We Need to Double Down on Harm Reduction, Not Walk Away From It”, it argues that we’re making progress on the overdose crisis, but only because tools like naloxone distribution, syringe service programs, medications for opioid use disorder, & housing-first strategies are being used. 

Here’s the thing: overdose prevention centers (OPCs) are one form of harm reduction that’s often misunderstood. They don’t enable drug use. They save lives. For example, OnPoint in NYC has reversed nearly 2,000 overdoses since 2021. 

Why Rochester needs them:
• Because people are dying here, just like in other cities.

• Because having a place where overdose can be prevented safely, with medical staff, clean supplies, even pathways to treatment, that matters.

• Because harm reduction doesn’t abandon people, it meets them where they are.

• Because investment in what works saves more in healthcare, policing, and grief than ignoring the problem.

If you’ve got doubts, totally fair. I once had some myself. But what if we judged policies by how many lives they could save, not by our discomfort with the topic? If you care about neighbors, families, safety, maybe give this a read.

https://www.commondreams.org/opinion/harm-reduction-drug-policy

Would love your thoughts. How do you think a center like this would work (or not) in Rochester?

We have come too far to turn our backs on what works when it comes to sound, life-saving drug policies. Now is the wrong time to politicize practical, proven responses to this medical emergency.

09/10/2025

https://c.org/qrG96GnSMg
(will add link to story next so it’s easy to just click)

👉 Just follow these steps:

1️⃣ Click the petition link
2️⃣ Enter your first name, last name, and email address
3️⃣ Click “Sign This Petition”

✅ That’s it, your signature is counted!

💡 Important Note:

After signing, Change.org may ask you to chip in or donate to help “promote” the petition.

🟠 You do NOT need to donate to complete your signature.

Just skip that screen, your signature is already counted!

🙏 Thank you for standing with us.

Every signature helps us show elected officials that Monroe County wants Overdose Prevention Centers, now.

Let’s save lives, together.
✍️ Sign. 📢 Share. 🗣️ Speak up.

09/02/2025

Every year in January, Rochester and Monroe County count how many people are experiencing homelessness on a single night. This year, on January 23, 2025, the number was 1,194 people. (Full report linked below)

Breakdown:
• 93% (1,121 people) were in shelters that night.
• 6% (73 people) were sleeping outside, in cars, tents, or other places not meant for living.
• Almost 1 in 4 were kids under 18.
• 1 in 5 met the federal definition of chronically homeless.
• The overwhelming majority of people living unsheltered were adults without children.

More than half of those counted were Black/African American, about a quarter were White, and Hispanic/Latin individuals made up roughly 14%. Among people living outside, White and Black residents each made up about a third.

Why it matters for Monroe County taxpayers and leaders:

The most visible and expensive part of this crisis is adults living unsheltered with untreated mental health and substance use issues. These are the folks driving repeat 911 calls, ER visits, jail bookings, and street-level overdoses. Every one of those costs comes back to taxpayers.

A local Overdose Prevention Center could change this.

OPCs reduce deaths, but they also link people directly into treatment, housing, and support. They lower emergency response costs, cut preventable hospitalizations, and create a safer community for everyone, whether you live downtown, in the suburbs, or anywhere in Monroe County.

We can keep watching these numbers climb and keep paying the bill… or we can choose solutions that actually work.

Not sure what you can do? Send us a message and we can follow up with some action items.

https://letsendhomelessness.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/2025-PIT-Summary-Report.pdf

09/01/2025

Two years ago, on Overdose Awareness Day, this video landed in our feeds, local Rochester groups lifting up harm reduction, reminding us that support and compassion aren’t optional. Seeing it now feels both hopeful and heartbreakingly familiar.

Fast-forward two years, and Monroe County and the City of Rochester still act as though an Overdose Prevention Center is abstract, like it’s from some blueprint no one’s read. Yet every study, lived story, and this very video shows how O.P.C.s deliver real benefits, for our neighbors, for public safety, and yes, for our wallets.

Our elected officials seem stuck in neutral, pretending ignorance of the evidence. But we know better. We’ve seen how communities transformed when support, not stigma, takes the lead.

Let’s not let the video be a relic. Let it remind us that healing happens when we choose action. Two years on, it’s not enough to remember, we need to act.

What can you do? Send us a message for steps that you can take to hold our Electeds accountable.

https://youtu.be/K0THjV6kjJA?si=5ujM-rWL7Q-XQ6Sq

In the video;
Recovery All Ways
Recovery Coach University

Thursday marks International Overdose Awareness Day. Local groups in Rochester are pushing their mission forward to encourage harm reduction and build on sup...

08/30/2025

Suburbs, listen up, an Overdose Prevention Center in Monroe County isn’t just about “that neighborhood.” It’s about all of us, this is your fight too.

Brighton, Brockport, Chili, Churchville, Clarkson, East Rochester, Fairport, Gates, Greece, Hamlin, Henrietta, Hilton, Honeoye Falls, Irondequoit, Mendon, Ogden, Parma, Penfield, Perinton, Pittsford, Riga, Rush, Scottsville, Spencerport, Sweden, Webster and Wheatland.

When one part of the county stabilizes, we all feel the ripple.

Safer public spaces. Fewer overdoses on sidewalks, in parks, or in library bathrooms. That means kids, families, and neighbors everywhere are less likely to witness trauma.

Stronger first response. Every overdose prevented inside an OPC is one fewer 911 call tying up EMTs, firefighters, and police. That means quicker response when you need them.

Pathways to recovery. OPCs connect people to treatment, housing, and healthcare in real time. Stabilizing someone in one ZIP code reduces strain on hospitals and services countywide.

Taxpayer savings. ER visits, emergency calls, and jail bookings cost us all. Prevention centers flip the math: less crisis spending, more lives saved.

Ripple of recovery. When people survive, they get the chance to recover, and many give back. One person’s survival today can become tomorrow’s volunteer, mentor, or parent.

Supporting an OPC isn’t charity for “somewhere else.” It’s an investment in a healthier, safer Monroe County, suburbs included.

08/14/2025

🚨 WARNING: K2 / “Synthetic Marijuana” is NOT w**d 🚨

K2 (a.k.a. Spice, Black Mamba, Scooby Snax) is dried plant material sprayed with dangerous lab-made chemicals.
Effects can hit 100× stronger than THC—and every batch is different.

⚠️ Risks:
• Severe anxiety, paranoia, hallucinations
• Seizures, kidney injury, collapse
• Outbreaks of rat poison contamination causing life-threatening bleeding
• No antidote—ER care is supportive only

If you notice sudden bleeding, bruising, confusion, or collapse → Call 911 immediately.
Naloxone won’t reverse pure K2 effects, but carry it anyway—some batches are tainted with opioids.

Stay safe. Know what you’re using. Look out for each other. ❤️

08/12/2025

Lives saved. Communities strengthened. First responders supported.

NYC and Rhode Island’s local Overdose Prevention Centers are more than a program, they’re a lifeline.

Their first responders are telling us the truth:
🚑 Fewer overdose deaths.
🚒 Safer, faster emergency responses.
👮 Less drug use in public spaces.
🏥 Reduced ER strain.
📊 Real-time data to fight dangerous drug batches.

When those on the front lines say this works, we should listen.

Investing in prevention isn’t just compassion, it’s smart, effective community safety.

08/11/2025

“We love on people until they’re ready to love on themselves”, says Executive Director, Sam Rivera.

This ideology runs through all of OnPoint NYC's work, influencing their programming and approach.

Learn more about what this truly looks like in their latest blog post. https://bit.ly/4mxFJ2j

“We love on people until they’re ready to love on themselves, says our Executive Director, Sam Rivera. This ideology runs through all of OnPoint NYC's work, influencing our programming and approach. Learn more about what this truly looks like in our latest blog post. https://bit.ly/4mxFJ2j