Release date: 11/21/2017
RALEIGH, NC – Attorney General Josh Stein today awarded 11 North Carolinians with the Attorney General’s Dogwood Awards. These awards are given to honor North Carolinians who are dedicated to keeping people safe, healthy and happy in their communities. Each of today’s 11 recipients have been working to confront the opioid crisis.
This year’s recipients of the Dogwood Award are:
- Thomas Bashore, Nashville Chief of Police
- Tessie Castillo, Advocacy and Communications Coordinator for Carolina Harm Reduction
- Van Duncan, Buncombe County Sheriff
- Blake Fagan, Family Physician and Chief Education Officer at Mountain Area Health Education Centerr
- Chase Holleman, Founder of Guilford Naloxone Task Force
- Donald McDonald, Executive Director of Addiction Professionals of NC
- Heather Moore, Founder of the Anchor Holds
- Ola Lewis, Brunswick County Senior Resident Superior Court Judge
- Cindy Patane, Co-founded Sneads Ferry’s Heroin Opiate Prevention Education Program
- Vanessa Sapp, Co-founded Sneads Ferry’s Heroin Opiate Prevention Education Program
In addition to the awards, Attorney General Stein also announced a new online resource for people interested in combatting the opioid crisis in their own communities. That website, https://opioidresources.ncdoj.gov/, allows people to learn about what other communities are doing, think about what might work in their community, and put ideas into action.
“Since January, I’ve traveled across the state to talk to people about the opioid crisis and how they’re addressing it in their community,” said Attorney General Stein. “These meetings have taught me two things: first, there are hard-working people all across our state who are making a difference in their community. That is why I wanted to honor a selection of those folks with the Dogwood Awards. And second, there are great programs in North Carolina that are making a difference in this crisis – and I want to make it easy to spread the word about them. I hope people will use this online resource to make a difference in their own community.”
Since taking office in January, Attorney General Stein has convened round table events in 19 communities across the state to learn about their efforts to confront this epidemic and share information. For more information on AG Josh Stein and the opioid crisis: https://ncdoj.gov/responding-to-crime/opioid-epidemic/
Contact:
Laura Brewer (919) 716-6484
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