HAVRE DE GRACE, Md.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Ashley Addiction Treatment, a nationally recognized leader in the integrated, evidence-based treatment of substance-use disorders, today announced 2018 winners of the Father Joseph C. Martin Professional Excellence Award and Ashley Addiction Treatment Innovator Award. Every year, Ashley Addiction bestows these prestigious honors on two professionals who have had a profound impact on the countless lives who suffer from addiction. The awards will be presented in Anaheim, CA on Aug. 21 at the National Conference on Alcohol and Addiction Disorders (NCAD).
Faith Strong is a nonagenarian heiress whose own successful recovery from addiction paved the way for her remarkable philanthropic life including donating more than $8 million to help women fight alcoholism and drugs at New Directions for Women in Orange County, CA. She is receiving Ashley’s Father Joseph C. Martin Professional Excellence Award. Strong was selected because she embodies Father Martin’s legacy of treatment with dignity and respect and over the years she has focused on finding ways to help individuals and their families achieve long-term recovery.
Marvin Ventrell, executive director of the National Association of Addiction Treatment Providers (NAATP), is the recipient of the Ashley Addiction Treatment Innovator Award. Marvin is being recognized for the impact he has had on the field of recovery through his innovative, creative and forward thinking. He has spent his 30-year career as a lawyer, association director, teacher and addiction treatment executive. As a vocal member of the addiction recovery community, Ventrell serves on numerous boards and committees and just last month testified before the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations on Capitol Hill during the hearing “Examining Advertising and Marketing Practices within the Substance Use Treatment Industry.”
“Our independent committee of leading addiction and mental health professionals chose exceptionally worthy winners for this year’s awards,” said Rebecca (Becky) Flood, President and CEO of Ashley Addiction Treatment. “Faith has bravely leveraged her own experience with addiction to help remove the stigma that keeps so many of those who suffer from seeking help. Marvin has devoted his career to advocating for populations in need and, because of his dedication, we’re closer to developing legal and health care systems that will meet those needs.”
Formerly known as the National Conference on Addiction Disorders, the Conference this year was recently renamed to give more weight to the deleterious effect of alcohol and drugs on American communities.
“Alcohol may not be the only drug negatively affecting Americans’ quality of life these days, but it’s certainly one of the most commonly abused ones,” shared Institute for the Advancement of Behavioral Healthcare Director Doug Edwards. “In fact, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 88,000 Americans die from alcohol-related causes annually, and that’s nearly 40 percent more than the number of deaths caused by opioid overdoses. People like Faith and Marvin are doing amazing work to help address this concerning issue, and we are excited to host them at the National Conference on Alcohol and Addiction Disorders (NCAD) this year.”
Flood will not only recognize the two award winners at the National Conference on Alcohol and Addiction Disorders (NCAD) in Anaheim, CA August 19-22, 2018, but also will serve on a panel focused on practical approaches to battling the media’s negative portrayals of treatment and recovery. Flood is a proponent of uncovering and publicizing abuses but is concerned that patients and families have difficulty distinguishing between “good and bad players.”
The NCAD Conference returns to Ashley Addiction Treatment’s home state of Maryland next year at the Marriott Waterfront in Baltimore August 14-18, 2019.
Learn more about NCAD here.
About Ashley Addiction Treatment
Ashley Addiction Treatment (Ashley), celebrating its 35th anniversary this year, is a nationally recognized leader in the integrated, evidence-based treatment of substance-use disorders. Ashley’s expert staff implements a comprehensive program for patients that integrates a full spectrum of medical, clinical and holistic treatment methods. Ashley’s driving principle – “everything for recovery because recovery is everything” – reinforces its timeless mission to heal each individual with respect and dignity and reflects its ongoing commitment to meet new challenges. Accredited by The Joint Commission and a division of Ashley Inc., a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, Ashley has treated nearly 40,000 patients since its inception in 1983. Ashley’s expansive offerings include inpatient as well as outpatient treatment, sobriety enrichment, community outreach, family and children’s education and specialty programs. For more information, please visit http://www.ashleytreatment.org.
