GRAND RAPIDS — Sometimes, the Bright Spot emerges from difficult community conversations. Addiction, and how law enforcement and medical professionals serve the community, are not easy topics.
A free speaker series in Grand Rapids is bringing in leaders who have seen changes in their community emanating from the growing epidemic of addiction.
Police Chief Dave Suckling of Alexandria, New Hampshire, joined the KAXE Morning Show along with Itasca County Sheriff Joe Dasovich, Grand Rapids Police Chief Andy Morgan and Siri Eidsmo, project director of the opioid response program at Grand Itasca Clinic and Hospital.
A change in policing
Suckling is the featured speaker in the first of three community conversations on the topic of breaking the stigma of addiction, set for Wednesday, Feb. 11, at the Reif Center in Grand Rapids.
Suckling helped Alexandria, New Hampshire, become a recovery friendly town, and he implemented an officer-assisted path to treatment for individuals struggling with substance use disorder. Suckling was appointed to the Governor’s Commission on Addiction Treatment and Prevention in 2025 as the New Hampshire chiefs of police representative.
“We were arresting the same people time and time again," Suckling said. "It was the hamster wheel that I felt like we needed to get off, so we started this program."
He recalled the moment when everything he thought about police work changed. Six years ago, after an overdose death of a young man, Suckling said he felt like he had failed the community.
“This kid had nowhere to turn to. It was a Monday morning. He should have been at work," he said.
The young man had been in recovery for about 18 months, but after a fight with his girlfriend on a Friday night, he turned to what he knew: opioids.
“It may have given him a warm hug on a Friday night, but by Monday, he was dead.”
This incident illustrated the system was not working in Suckling's estimation. A new program grew, which included a local recovery agency and reaching out to resources outside the community.
Suckling said it wasn't easy, and described an uphill battle the whole time. He said he believes prevention is the cornerstone of getting through the opioid epidemic, but also believes their work to change the stigma around addiction has made a difference in a community of 1,759 people.
According to Suckling, Alexandria, New Hampshire, has not seen one more overdose in six years.
Sharing knowledge, starting conversations
The goal of the speaker series is to foster understanding and bring together community members, local law enforcement and health professionals to learn from each other.
Dasovich, as Itasca County sheriff, said he sees addiction every day and noted the county is moving forward to bring addiction therapy into the county jail. He described a recent trip to LaSalle, Illinois, to learn how they are approaching addiction.
"It's ranging from the crimes committed to support their habit to all the way to overdose death," Dasovich said. "But in between, it's the effects it has on staff."
Dasovich said he was able to move forward in changing the approach to addiction, explaining how the jail population in Itasca County has between 70-90 inmates at any given time, usually with at least 10 people in treatment for addiction.
The whole country, including Northern Minnesota and the city of Grand Rapids, is dealing regularly with addiction and substance abuse, according to Morgan, Grand Rapids police chief.
“For law enforcement, root causes and underlying factors are much harder to identify and track than standard police action," he said. "Law enforcement is committed to better understanding those issues so that we can tweak or we can adjust our police services accordingly."
The speaker series from Grand Itasca Clinic and Hospital stems from a federal grant from Health Resources and Services Administration for $1.5 million in 2023.
“When we started the grant, we didn’t have anyone that was prescribing medications for opioid use disorder,” Eidsmo said. Now, the clinic has 10 providers who prescribe medications like Suboxone, which reduces cravings and withdrawal symptoms.
In looking back at the success in his rural community in New Hampshire, Suckling said, "Law enforcement doesn't necessarily feel good all the time. We get yelled at, spat at, kicked at."
“When this goes right, it’s one of the best feelings you’ll ever have as law enforcement. Because it feels good to put a family back together.”
Break the Stigma: Speaking Series
- Wednesday, Feb. 11 - Chief Dave Suckling, "Beyond the Arrest"
- Thursday, March 12 - Katy Larson, licensed alcohol and drug counselor, "The Long Way Home"
- Tuesday, April 28 - Michigan Judge Linda Davis, "Bridging the Gaps"
All talks begin at 7 p.m. in the Ives Theater at the Reif Center in Grand Rapids.
Hear the full conversation above.
Is there a Bright Spot in your community? Let us know!
The Bright Spot is made possible by the Minnesota Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund and the citizens of Minnesota.
