A start-up non-profit that proposed opening a recovery center in Concord to replace Hope for New Hampshire Recovery has dropped its plans.
Merle Burke, president of the newly established Midpoint Recovery Center Inc., said he was deterred from creating a recovery center in the capital city after a “discouraging” meeting with state officials this week.
“Right from the get-go I got the opinion they were not supportive of any startup engaging in the Concord area,” Burke said, of his meeting with Health and Human Services Commissioner Jeffrey Meyers and his staff.
“I think Meyers had his mind made up before I even walked in the door,” Burke said. “He didn’t throw a little cold water, he threw a five-gallon bucket on us.”
Midpoint Recovery Center, Inc., a non-profit operating out of the First Presbyterian Church in Manchester, was founded in September by Burke, a former life coach.
Burke said he had hoped to use Midpoint to fill a gap left in Concord in February after Hope for Recovery announced it was closing four recovery satellite operations, one of them in Concord.
Although the Executive Council later approved a $600,000 state contract with Hope for Recovery, that money was only allotted to the organization’s Manchester, Berlin and Franklin locations.
Burke said he met with Executive Director Melissa Crews in March about the possibility of Midpoint taking over the lease on Hope’s former resource center on South State Street. He also met with Peter Evers of Riverbend, and Executive Councilor Andru Volinksy.
Midpoint hoped to raise $103,000 through private donations by April – enough to cover initial expenses like rent and insurance, and then apply for state aid.
But after his meeting with Meyers this week, Burke said he’s confident that won’t be happening.
“In so many words, he told me that it was not going to happen because of our status as a new organization,” Burke said. “If we wanted to participate we had to get in line with some of the more established groups.”
Health and Human Services spokesperson Jake Leon said the department didn’t intend to discourage Burke.
“We are disappointed that Mr. Burke characterized our discussion as discouragement of his or any start-up organization wishing to respond to the opioid epidemic,” Leon said. “DHHS provided feedback that we believe would strengthen the viability of the plan put Mr. Burke forward, including further discussions with recently-formed peer recovery support organizations and developing community partnerships to fill service needs, avoid duplication and strengthen the collective response to the epidemic.”
Burke said Midpoint will likely focus its efforts on creating a gathering space in Manchester for people in recovery. He was disappointed that the organization would not be continuing to pursue a location in Concord.
“We felt we had some support for what we were doing,” he said. “One of the problems is you have to have money to do something like this.”