Atlantic County Hope One Project Marks 2nd Year

This is the 2nd year anniversary of the Hope One Project. The program was established in 2018, to address both the addiction and mental health crisis in Atlantic County.

Atlantic County Sheriff Eric Scheffler has confirmed that the program has placed the 1,000th person in treatment.

“I am sincerely touched and proud that we have been able to help more than a thousand people in our community through the Hope One Project,” said Scheffler.

“This is one of the many ways that I have gone outside the purview of what this office has done in the past as we have helped the community in countless ways. I continuously look at the issues that are troublesome for Atlantic County residents and do whatever I can to help those I serve.”

The Atlantic County model is built after the successful Morris County initiative, which created the Hope One name and concep.

It’s a mobile (see photograph of vehicle) outreach program that works to successfully connect people affected with treatment facilities to meet their specific needs.

After a person successfully completed their treatment program, there are also follow-up programs built into the program.

“I saw a real need for this program in Atlantic County because prior to Hope One, it could have taken days or even weeks for people to get the help they needed so badly,” Scheffler said. “No one chooses to be an addict or suffer from mental health issues. So, to me, waiting that long was just unacceptable.”

Here is the entire public release from Scheffler as follows: