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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – December 29, 2022
Contact: Emma Twombly, Communications Specialist (etwombly@medford-ma.gov), 781-393-2110
Medford Secures Over $400K in Grant Funding to Expand its Climate Resiliency
State Municipal Vulnerability Preparedness Grant will Help to Connect the Community during Climate Disasters
(MEDFORD) – The City has secured a $400,000 Municipal Vulnerability Grant from the state that will help improve climate resiliency throughout the community, expand the City’s emergency preparedness strategies, and increase accessible communications to non-English speakers in Medford, Mayor Breanna Lungo-Koehn announced.
With this funding, the City is enhancing its climate resiliency and emergency preparedness efforts through “Medford Connects.” Climate vulnerability and resiliency refers to how sensitive a community is to climate emergencies, and how quickly it can rebuild afterward. This is especially relevant to communities that have been marginalized and are therefore more sensitive and cannot rebuild as quickly due to a lack of resources. Medford Connects, headed by Prevention and Outreach Manager Penny Funaiole, will seek to expand and strengthen resources for community members who are most marginalized to build the community’s ability to withstand and recover from climate crises in the future.
“Equitable access to critical communications and resources is essential to protecting our entire community, especially our most vulnerable,” said Mayor Lungo-Koehn. “The MVP funding for Medford Connects will make it possible to better support communities before, during, and after climate emergencies, as well as increase and expand communications, allowing everyone to be included and engaged in these conversations.”
Medford Connects will be connecting community partners to build resources throughout the community. By connecting partners, the project will build local communication systems for speakers of other languages (ESOL), expand communications to engage a more diverse senior population, invest in young families and youth social-emotional skills, elevate Black, Indigenous, Residents of Color in local leadership positions and to economic security, and empower residents experiencing food insecurity to help shape the local foodscape.
“We are seeking to create a more equitable and connected Medford for all those who live here and call Medford home, while also preparing our community for climate change,” said Penelope Funaiole, Prevention and Outreach Manager. “The next step is to hire more community liaisons to work with the five we’ve already hired to inform community needs and communicate city services.”
The MVP grant will be used to revitalize Medford Connects by partnering with city departments and community-based organizations at the forefront of resilient services. The focus of Medford Connects for FY23-24 will be to begin setting up a virtual resilience hub, centralize local services information, formalize a network of community partners, and set the foundation for resilient communications.
To learn more about the Medford Connects program or the MVP grant funding, please visit https://www.teammedford.org/medford-connects/ or contact Penelope Funaiole at pbruce@medford-ma.gov.
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Emma Twombly
Communications Specialist | Office of Mayor Breanna Lungo-Koehn
Medford City Hall
85 George P Hassett Dr, Medford, MA 02155
781-393-2529 (office)
Please note: The Commonwealth of Massachusetts considers most electronic communications to and from public employees to be public records and disclosable under the Massachusetts Public Records Law and its regulations. *Please consider the environment before printing this email.*
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – December 15, 2022
Contact: Emma Twombly, Communications Specialist (etwombly@medford-ma.gov), 781-393-2529
Medford to Receive Over $830K as Part of State Attorney General’s Lawsuit Against Opioid Manufacturers
Settlement will be used to address recovery and prevention challenges for opioid use
(MEDFORD) – The City of Medford will receive over $830,000 from a settlement of a statewide class action lawsuit filed by Attorney General Maura Healy against opioid distributors and manufacturers. Paid out over an 18-year period, the administration will use these funds to mitigate the effects of addiction, focusing on prevention, intervention, and supporting those in recovery.
In total, the lawsuit will award $500 million in payments from the distributors with 40 percent of the settlement distributed to various cities and towns in Massachusetts affected by the opioid epidemic. The other 60 percent will be allocated to the statewide Opioid Recovery and Remediation Fund, which will be expended to mitigate the impacts of the opioid epidemic, including expanded access to prevention, intervention, treatment, and recovery options.
“The opioid crisis has caused immense pain throughout our state and led to so many challenges and hardships for families,” Mayor Breanna Lungo-Koehn said. “It is my hope that with this settlement we will be able to increase our support services and provide more treatment options as well as prevention information to aid people dealing with substance use and its ramifications.”
Medford will use the settlement funds to reduce the impact of the opioid crisis through increased prevention programming, harm reduction offerings, access to treatment, and access to recovery programs. Under the direction of Medford’s Health Department and Office and Outreach and Prevention, plans and programs will be implemented with community stakeholders’ input, including people with lived experience. The City is awaiting additional guidance from the state on how to begin the process of allocating the funds from the settlement. The community will be involved in where to invest settlement funds and will help guide the city’s strategy and priorities for how to best mitigate the effects of opioid use.
“The proliferation of opioid prescriptions has caused irreparable harm to many families in Medford,” said Prevention and Outreach Manager Penny Funaiole. “The funds from this settlement will go a long way toward treating substance use and getting the necessary resources and tools into the hands of the people who need it most.”
For more information on the Medford Health Department’s Office of Prevention and Outreach, please contact 781-475-5646 or alagambina@medford-ma.gov.
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Emma Twombly
Communications Specialist | Office of Mayor Breanna Lungo-Koehn
Medford City Hall
85 George P Hassett Dr, Medford, MA 02155
781-393-2529 (office)
Please
note: The Commonwealth of Massachusetts considers most electronic
communications to and from public employees to be public records
and disclosable under the Massachusetts Public Records Law and its
regulations. *Please consider the environment before printing this
email.*
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