Save the Michaels of the World, Inc. was established in June of 2011 as a small kitchen roundtable action group, to bring attention and awareness of the devastating effects of opioid medications after the death by suicide of 20 year old Michael David Israel.
Avi and Julie Israel decided they didn’t want to see other families suffer the loss of a loved one. The journey started with an interview with a Buffalo News reporter who told Michael’s story. That story got more attention from TV stations. Doctors, patients, parents and the population as a whole are not aware of the danger of opiate addiction. We wanted to find a way to address the overprescribing of pain medications such as hydrocodone and others.
Program Director, Recovery Center
Save the Michaels of the World, Lockport
Emily joined Save the Michaels in the summer of 2023 as the Clinical Supervisor of the Lockport Recovery Center and recently transitioned to Program Director. Emily struggled with substance use, mental health, eating disorders, and self-harm since middle school. She received her first mental health diagnosis in 9th grade, linked with her first therapist shortly after, and was in and out of treatment centers during her college years. After teaching 4thgrade for two years, she had the opportunity to make a career change after a conversation with her bandmate, the Executive Director of a local outpatient SUD program. Emily fell in love with the work, embraced the responsibility of using her story to guide others, and started work on obtaining her CASAC. After experiencing the loss of a close family member, Emily again returned to substance use, anorexia, and self-harm. In the fall of 2018, Emily returned to treatment and spent 3 months in a residential treatment center, actively seeking to understand her mental health, relying heavily on the therapy of Internal Family Systems (IFS). Emily currently has over 5.5 years of sobriety from alcohol and weaves the empathy and understanding she has for her personal journey into her interactions with her participants, peers, and employees. At Save the Michaels, Emily loves learning from and with her employees, growing in her self-awareness, and building rapport with those who come in to utilize the recovery center.
‘Narcan — it gives people a second chance’: New Narcan vending machine to save lives
https://www.wkbw.com/news/local-news/northtowns/narcan-it-gives-people-a-second-chance-new-narcan-vending-machine-to-save-lives
There is a new way of fighting the drug overdose epidemic to save lives. A Narcan vending machine is now installed outside the Kenmore Fire Department.
“I reached out to Save the Michaels over 2 years ago and was looking for help with my husband, who is an alcoholic and at the time, he did not want to get any help. I came to understand that I needed help too. I have come a long way. I have a new perspective on things that I just didn’t think about amid all the drinking HE was doing. I can truly say that STM gave me the tools to use to keep things under control for ME. Once I used the tools suggested to me, I can honestly say that I was given a voice I didn’t know I had. I can say thanks to STM and their encouragement that my husband is now SOBER for a year and a half, and it has been awesome. SO, THANK YOU SAVE THE MICHAEL’S FOR WHAT YOU DO. YOU ALL ARE AMAZING PEOPLE. YOU SAVED TWO PEOPLE THE DAY YOU CALLED BACK. GOD BLESS.”
“Tapping into the support provided by Save The Michaels has been an absolute godsend. We highly recommend it.”
“I am beyond grateful to tell you that because of your services…I was able to have my two beautiful daughters returned to my care.”