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This story begins 34 years ago with a pad of paper, a pencil, and just a rotatory phone. What Netflix\u2019s documentary, Cocaine Cowboys, <\/em>didn\u2019t tell you was about the community who decided they had seen enough; enough crime, enough pill mills, and enough lives lost and affected by the influx of drugs and violence being brought to the shores of Florida. In Fort Lauderdale, a group of residents decided that it was time to stand up.\u00a0 Built from the guiding principle of a common-sense need for change and non-bias approaches to collaboration, the United Way of Broward \u041a\u043e\u043c\u0438\u0441\u0441\u0438\u044f \u043f\u043e \u0437\u043b\u043e\u0443\u043f\u043e\u0442\u0440\u0435\u0431\u043b\u0435\u043d\u0438\u044e \u043f\u0441\u0438\u0445\u043e\u0430\u043a\u0442\u0438\u0432\u043d\u044b\u043c\u0438 \u0432\u0435\u0449\u0435\u0441\u0442\u0432\u0430\u043c\u0438<\/strong> (the Commission) was started.\u00a0 Why did these community residents come together to become community leaders? It\u2019s because they already were leaders. Legacy members of the Fort Lauderdale community \u2013 the movers and shakers if you will \u2013 were the impetus behind its creation; they were fed up. It wasn\u2019t going to be easy, though. If you know about the Cocaine Cowboys era, you can imagine the tenacity and bravery these individuals forged ahead with.<\/p>\n \u201cPlain and simple our community reached its tipping point,\u201d said CADCA\u2019s Director, National Coalition Institute & Vice President of Training Operations, Pat Castillo<\/strong> \u2013 former coalition leader herself of the Commission (joined the Commission in 1997).\u00a0 \u201cDave Choate<\/strong>, the original Executive Director and Vice-President of the Commission would tell us the story of the Cocaine Cowboys back in the late 1980s.\u00a0 There was a huge problem happening in South Florida \u2013 and there was no place where people could meet to do something about this problem.\u00a0 There was gun violence, open dealing on the streets and the community wanted to be part of the solution.\u00a0 They tried meeting at different locations \u2013 courts, the Sheriff\u2019s office and it just didn\u2019t work.\u00a0 It just didn\u2019t feel right. They finally tried the United Way because it was a neutral place.\u201d<\/p>\n It is important to note that this was all happening just at the cusp of the start of the coalition movement.\u00a0 \u201cPeople didn\u2019t even know what a prevention coalition was!\u00a0 Dave was hired to work there only for a few years, but he stayed for 25! He had opportunities to go elsewhere but he chose not to. His legacy continues to be built by the people who still come together each month and meet to talk about substance use prevention, the well-being of their neighbors and friends and the steps needed to address these issues in their communities. As if he wasn\u2019t already busy enough, Dave, in fact, was also part of the early years of the CADCA\u2019s Coalition Advisory Council. South Florida has always been a major hub and connection point with CADCA because we were very much part of the start of the movement. CADCA\u2019s Chairman and CEO Emeritus, General Dean,<\/strong> and CADCA\u2019s Public Policy Consultant, \u0421\u044c\u044e \u0422\u0430\u0443<\/strong> would be frequent visitors down to our communities.\u00a0 They would come down to see the pulse of the community and visit the pill mills.\u00a0 Many of their stories, visions, and experiences were built in South Florida during these dangerous times.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAnd when it comes to CADCA, you know people from Florida care about something if they\u2019re willing to travel up north in the middle of winter, newly purchased winter coats in hands, to be at Forum!\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThe key ingredients to our work were the people sitting at the table. The strength of our coalition was its non-bias approach,\u201d said \u0413\u043e\u043d\u0441\u0430\u043b\u043e \u041a\u0430\u0434\u0438\u043c\u0430<\/strong>, Deputy Director, Training Operations at CADCA (Joined the Commission in 2001).\u00a0 \u201cThere was just a common sense feeling on the need for this movement to happen.\u00a0 Common sense that there was a need to talk, to discuss, to plan and to act.\u00a0 This is the principle of what has kept it going.\u00a0 Working together we can do more, but in a natural way. Because we were there with no personal or political bias, it allowed us to be nimble and work together so that we all complemented each other\u2019s strengths.\u201d Acting with naturality and trust, it becomes consolidated into your DNA.\u00a0 It\u2019s a memory being built, so we know how to tackle any problem. It let us keep our identity while being open to make changes. We even changed our name as a sign of our evolution – \u00a0it’s now the\u00a0Commission on Behavioral Health and Drug Prevention. We knew we had to grow alongside the culture of our community. The evolution of a coalition, and keeping future generations involved, is just as important as its origin.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThe story of our pill mills is still such a vivid memory for me,\u201d said Castillo.\u00a0 \u201cBeing at the pill mill epicenter of the United States \u2013 not Florida \u2013 but the US, meant people would come in from Tennessee, Kentucky, and other states to line up outside these places at 8 in the morning on Oakland Blvd, cash in hand, ready to buy. Those memories are still so clear to me and are in my DNA as I continue my work here with CADCA.\u00a0 Sitting around the table with our coalition was really captivating because we had really strong advocates in our community who were frankly done with just sitting by as their hometown burned.\u00a0 This is why I talk a lot about the magic and synergy that comes from being together around a table as a coalition.\u00a0 This really came from out of nothing.\u00a0 It came from an idea to create change.\u00a0 While they didn\u2019t necessarily have the money, what they did have was heart and the backing of the community.\u00a0 They wanted better and they could all give a piece of themselves.\u00a0 That\u2019s what coalition work really is all about.\u201d<\/p>\n After Pat and Gonzalo transitioned to their new, yet connected, journey in prevention with CADCA, they knew it was always good to go home.\u00a0 And there\u2019s no homecoming like a celebration homecoming.\u00a0 Now, one of the nation\u2019s longest-standing coalitions, Pat and Gonzalo used the power of social media to bring an idea to life.\u00a0 \u201cOur reunion started with a simple outreach on Facebook,\u201d said Cadima.\u00a0 \u201cWe don\u2019t do this every year but we thought, wouldn\u2019t it be nice, after so many years, especially after these difficult past few years, if we went back home.\u00a0 This was an opportunity to just be there, be connected, and be happy together.\u00a0 Everyone there is so proud of Pat, and where she is today.\u00a0 It\u2019s that connection to people, where we can learn from each other and take the good out of every part of the last 34 years.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cTogether, with this group of people, we created memories. These memories of coming together, fighting for what\u2019s right, and creating change is a learned behavior. Whenever a new challenge is presented to us, we had the muscle memory to address it.\u00a0 We weren\u2019t restarting from scratch every single time. We knew that when we came back together, those memories would fill in the blanks of the time we were apart.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s also about relationships,\u201d said Castillo.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019re sitting around with like-minded people who care about each other, care about the work and care about the community.\u00a0 With those 3 ingredients, anything is possible.\u00a0 And you can tell because why else would they consistently show up at 7:45 in the morning for meetings!\u201d<\/p>\n This story started 34 years ago. With just a pad of paper, a pencil, and a rotary phone. Maybe your story started more recently.\u00a0 Maybe your story started differently. May your story is as unique an origin story as are those of many other coalitions. Share yours with our team and let\u2019s start making new memories together. We want to hear from you!<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" This story begins 34 years ago with a pad of paper, a pencil, and just a rotatory phone. What Netflix\u2019s<\/p>","protected":false},"author":23,"featured_media":5835,"template":"","resource_type":[281],"drug_specific_issues":[],"action_to_do":[282],"class_list":["post-16998","resource","type-resource","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","resource_type-coalitions-online","action_to_do-increase-participation-and-membership"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n