VSAAC to change name to Alliance for Prevention & Wellness

Community program is part of BHcare

ANSONIA - BHcare’s Greater Valley Substance Abuse Action Council will become the Alliance for Prevention & Wellness on Aug. 1. 

The new mission of the program will be: We foster positive mental health by preventing substance misuse and other health-risk behaviors and by building resources that promote wellness.  

The decision to change the name was decided by a committee made up various community members including Michael Gulish, Chair, BHcare Board of Directors, John Scott, concerned citizen, Nancy Phund, Director, Woodbridge Youth and Family Services, Bill Nimons, Treasurer, BHcare Board of Directors, Jack Walsh, President/CEO Valley United Way, Mark Holden, local business owner and BHcare board member, Carol Cruz, Recovery Community, Veronica Parsloe, Parent Child Resource Center, Joni Nordstrom, Bethany Orange Woodbridge Drug and Alcohol Council and VSAAC staff.

“We felt it was necessary for the program’s name to reflect all that we do,” said Pam Mautte, Director of VSAAC. “VSAAC has a long history of substance abuse prevention activities and continues to expand its programs to address substances of abuse, suicide, risky behaviors and to promote good mental health. Our service area continues to grow throughout the Lower Naugatuck Valley and Greater New Haven. The Alliance for Prevention & Wellness is a direct result of our donors’ and community partners’ commitment to improving our communities,” Mautte said. 

VSAAC was formed in 1990 as a result of a community retreat held by the Valley United Way with concerned citizens to address substance abuse issues in the Valley. 
It operates as one of 13 Regional Action Councils across the State of Connecticut. 

The program has engaged churches, schools, businesses, human service agencies, neighborhood organizations, government offices, law enforcement, and concerned citizens of all ages, races, and ethnic backgrounds in prevention activities. 
The program maintains strong collaborative relationships with area police departments, the local prevention councils, social service agencies, and youth service bureaus and has an extensive repertoire of culturally competent substance abuse/high-risk behavior prevention programs. 

Over the past 25 years, VSAAC helped more than 150,000 youth and adults in our communities.

The Alliance for Wellness and Prevention is a program of BHcare. 

For more information, visit APW-CT.org.

BHcare is a regional community provider of behavioral health, addiction prevention, and domestic violence services for the Lower Naugatuck Valley, Greater New Haven and Shoreline communities.  

For more information, visit www.bhcare.org.


This is a press release from BHcare.