MHRS Board Celebrates Zero Overdose Deaths Year to Date at Its Annual Meeting
Geauga County Mental Health and Recovery Services Board (GC-MHRS) - July 16, 2025
Meeting Details: GC-MHRS Board held its Annual Meeting on Wednesday, July 16, 2025 at 6:00 pm at the Board offices located at 13244 Ravenna Rd., Chardon, OH 44024. This meeting was in person only with no recording available. The agenda was available through a request to Office/Administrative Manager Teresa Slater by email at tslater@geauga.org.
Public Comment Policy: No formal policy but in practice, public comment is permitted at the end of the meeting.
Board Members Attending: Chair Steven Oluic, Vice Chair Kathy Johnson, Secretary Jimmy Lee Holden, Treasurer Michael Petruziello, and Board Members Reba Dykes, Douglas Lundblad, Mary Ruth Shumway, and Patricia Varanese. Reviewer Note: At their July 29, 2025 meeting, the County Commissioners accepted the resignation of member Alberta Chokshi. The LWVGeauga Observer Report on this meeting is available here. Ms. Chokshi was appointed by the State of Ohio (Ohio MHAS - Mental Health and Addiction Services). Those appointed by the State are required to have mental health credentials. At this point there is no further information on the GC-MHRS website or through a call to the office. When information is available, it will be published on the LWVGeauga website.
Staff Members Attending: Executive Director Christine Lakomiak, Finance Director Jim Mausser, Office/Administrative Manager Teresa Slater and Clinical/Compliance Manager Michelle Maneage
Others Attending:
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Agency representatives: Angi Daugherty and Jennifer Marut (Family Pride), Melanie Blasko and Jack Hoover (Lake Geauga Recovery Center - LGRC), Michelle Bergman (Catholic Charities), Angela North (NAMI), Andrea Gutka (WomenSafe) and Vicky Clark and Megan Duderstadt (Ravenwood).
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Community members Newell Howard (Geauga County resident), Allison Wilson (Geauga County Maple Leaf journalist), Alicia Cody (OhioMHAS) and this LWVGeauga Observer. Observer note: There may have been a few other attendees who did not sign in or speak.
Call to Order, Roll Call, and Pledge of Allegiance occurred as listed on the agenda. The meeting was called to order at 6:01 pm.
Minutes: Minutes for the May 2025 Regular Meeting were approved. Minutes are available on the Board’s webpage here.
Chairman’s Report - Dr. Oluic reported:
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The June Meeting was canceled last month due to water issues.
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Transitional Living Center (TLC) is well on its way. Attendees were encouraged to drive by and see the progress on the project. The windows are in, and electrical and plumbing work are next.
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Dr. Oluic gave kudos for the recent article in the News Herald about cooperation between the Sheriff’s Department and GC-MHRS. He felt that it was nice coverage that showed how government should work.
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Live Well, a wellness event aimed at senior citizens, was held recently. Mental Health and Addiction agencies were among the providers who participated. He said it was a great event that was well attended and well organized.
Executive Director’s Report - Ms. Lakomiak discussed the following:
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Seven months into 2025 and there have been zero overdose deaths in the County. She said that this is worth celebrating and every life is worth saving. She expressed thanks to the Board and the contract agencies who have worked together to raise awareness, provide community support and funding for services that save lives. Between 2020 and 2024 there were 55 overdoses deaths. She said the zero overdose outcome thus far in 2025 involved more than just mental health services: law enforcement, courts, schools and other systems worked together to achieve this result.
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Director Lakomiak then introduced the first of three contract agencies that spoke about their recovery services programs.
Guest Speakers
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Family Pride: Angi Daugherty introduced Jen Marut, Clinical Supervisor with Family Pride. She has a specialty in dual diagnosis (mental health and addiction). She works with the courts and the Children and Family First Council. She talked of providing outpatient services to clients in active addiction in homes. She said working with the whole family provides unique opportunities to break “cycles and patterns.” The goal is to treat both diagnoses.
As a supervisor she has the opportunity to provide training to clinicians about mental health and addiction. She provides training for her staff about school and community partners, family systems and the uniqueness of working in homes; helping the clinicians be confident. Ms. Marut has found that universities often do not provide this training. She spends a lot of time in supervision and training. They offer internships to college students.
Ms. Marut was asked about being on advisory boards at schools. She said they have had conversations with schools. Internships have provided a good source of employees with about 75% to 90% of their interns hired.
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Lake Geauga Recovery Center: Melanie Blasko introduced Jack Hoover. She shared that Mr. Hoover joined the staff of LGRC in August 2022. He is a licensed chemical dependency counselor and works as a residential counselor at Concord Pines, one of their men’s residential treatment facilities (16 beds). Ms. Blasko stated, “He uses his personal experience with addiction to help others recover.” Mr. Hoover is 8 years sober. He has an Associate’s degree from Stark State College in North Canton, and he is currently earning his BA in Social Work at Youngstown State University.
Mr. Hoover shared his experiences as a client in a facility in Canton when he was becoming sober in 2017. He explained that the program at Concord Pines emphasizes building community. Doors are unlocked, and structure is provided. Residents clean and cook, attend groups, complete chores, write, discuss and generally support one another. They work to attain a home-like atmosphere. For many clients, the structure Concord Pines provides is something they have never experienced.
For the first 21 days clients are locked down, but after that initial period they go to outside Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) groups with vetted AA members. In addition to cognitive behavioral therapy, clients set goals, attend feelings groups weekly, and participate in wellness and yoga sessions. Ohio Lions provide a work study program. Many clients arrive with no drivers license, no job and poor health care. Services help clients get on the road to recovery. There is a nurse on staff for health/mental health concerns. The length of stay is not set at 90 days but individualized for the client’s needs. Concord Pines provides outpatient and aftercare. GLRC has 7 sober living houses: 3 for men, 4 for women. Client ages range from 18 to 65. Mr. Hoover said most of the employees are in recovery and there is a great team approach.
Data shows that 65% of women and 66% of men complete the LGRS’s residential programs. The national average is 43%. One year after a LGRS residential program stay, 56% of women and 52% of the men are still sober. The national average is 41%.
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Ravenwood Health: Vicki Clark introduced Megan Duderstadt, a Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor with a supervisor designation (LPCC-S), with 8 years experience, 5 at Ravenwood. She has experience with dual diagnosis (mental health and addiction) as well as family counseling. Ms. Duderstadt is the Medication Assisted Treatment (MAT) coordinator. Ms. Clark also introduced Pat Spidaro who has been with Ravenwood for 25 years. Ms. Spidaro is the Intensive Out Patient (IOP) coordinator.
Ms. Spidaro reported that she manages IOP groups, which are 9 hours per week. She likened recovery to the game of Chutes and Ladders, saying it is not a straight line. In 2021 they added peer support workers to the IOP groups who validate the client’s experiences and give them hope. In 2022 they added the evidence-based practice Seeking Safety curriculum. This educates clients about trauma and dual diagnosis. She noted that connection is the opposite of addiction and shared a story of a client who came from in-patient treatment. The client received wrap around services and is improving with support from many individuals despite her recent traumatic loss of a family member from an overdose.
Ms. Duderstadt explained Medication Assisted Treatment (MAT). MAT can help reverse the brain changes that come with addiction and opioid use. If a person uses the medication, they don’t get high because the medication blocks the opioid receptors. The cravings are also reduced. Ravenwood’s MAT program has been around since 2015. Ms. Duderstadt explained that the MAT program progresses through phases. At first the involvement is frequent and many different services are offered. Initially, in addition to IOP, clients meet with medical providers weekly. Case management is provided to help meet needs, such as housing and food, that if unmet might impede sobriety. Individual counseling and meeting with the medical provider is weekly at first. In later phases, services are tapered off, but the longest clients have been appointments with the medical provider is one month.
Ravenwood Health has an 82% success rate for sobriety maintained through MAT. Ms. Duderstadt shared a client success story of a man who is 3 years sober, off medications and leading a fulfilling life. She was asked “how soon do you taper off?” Ms. Duderstadt answered they have most success tapering off the medications completely after 2 years. There was a question about the kinds of stimulants Ms. Duderstadt sees abused most commonly, and she replied cocaine and amphetamines. Wellbutrin, Naltrexone and other medications are used for MAT. They have few side effects.
Ms. Duderstadt uses both Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT) and Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) in the MAT program.
Committee Reports -
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Programs and Policies - Chair Kathy Johnson said that they did not meet.
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Fiscal and Capital - Chair Reba Dykes said they met on May 5th. They reviewed the financial forecasting tool Jim Mausser uses. He’ll share this with the full Board at a later date.
Board Review and Action Items -
Financial Reports - Mr. Mausser reported the May 2025 totals as follows:
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The Board SFY2025 (7/1/24-6/30/25) office budget is through May 2025, and GC-MHRS has currently expended 86% of the budget.
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The County calendar year (1/1/25-12/31/25) Budget Performance Report shows GC-MHRS Board has expended just over $3.13 million through May.
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The Auditor's Fund Balance: the May Unencumbered Balance is just over $2.78 million.
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Voucher recap #707 May $711,957.16
Mr. Mausser reported the June 2025 totals as follows:
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The Board SFY2025 (7/1/24-6/30/25) office budget is through June 2025, and GC-MHRS has currently expended 94.4% of the budget.
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The County calendar year (1/1/25-12/31/25) Budget Performance Report shows GC-MHRS Board has expended just over $3.46 million through June.
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The Auditor's Fund Balance: the June Unencumbered Balance is just over $2.82 million.
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Voucher recap #708 June: $324,523.06
Old Business - None
New Business -
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Mr. Petruziello expressed interest in purchasing a new digital sign to replace the old wooden sign that has poor visibility for people trying to find the GC-MHRS Board. He said a digital sign would increase visibility and allow the Board to post upcoming events, share achievements and publicize training opportunities. The Board expressed interest and asked staff to get some bids.
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Ms. Lakomiak asked Board members to review the self-evaluation information in the Board packet. This is part of the certification process for the GC-MHRS Board. She said that suggestions regarding the survey are welcome. Once finalized, the self-evaluation will be put on Survey Monkey to keep responses confidential.
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The certification survey is happening Monday and Tuesday next week and will be a huge undertaking. Ms. Lakomiak complimented and thanked staff for all the preparation work certification requires. There are 151 standards involved.
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Because this is the Annual Meeting, discussion of the Live Well event was tabled until next month.
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Nominating Committee Report
Dr. Oluic directed attention to the proposed slate of officers in the Board Packet:
He then asked for discussion and nominations from the floor. There being none, the Board voted to accept the proposed slate of officers for SFY2026.
ROLL CALL VOTE. Aye: Unanimous
Public Comments:
Chairman Oluic commended the Guest Speakers. He stated that it is good for Board members to learn about the actual work being done. The speakers help Board members learn what the agencies are dealing with. Ms. Shumway also offered praise for the provider agencies who have learned to adapt as use patterns have changed. She said each different drug used by addicts brings its own set of challenges and behaviors and requires that agencies adapt and develop new solutions.
Alicia Cody, GC-MHRS’s liaison to Ohio Mental Health and Addiction Services (OhioMHAS) spoke briefly. She offered kudos for the great work being done in Geauga. Alicia works with 31 different counties and noted that she does not see this level of collaboration and community in other counties.
Adjournment: Meeting adjourned at 7:14 pm.
Board Minutes: Available at https://www.geauga.org/board-minutes/
Next meeting: The next meeting will be the Regular Meeting on August 20, 2025 at 6:00 pm. Meetings are held at the Board offices located at 13244 Ravenna Rd., Chardon, OH 44024.
More Information: https://www.geauga.org/
Observer: Kathy Franz
Editor: Rooney Moy
Reviewer: Sarah McGlone
Date Submitted: July 30, 2025
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