The Ozark County Substance Abuse Task Force started in 2019, gaining 501(c)3 status in March 2021.   

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Ozark County Substance Abuse Task Force (OCSATF) is a group of Christian community members who are working to keep our community safe from the harms of substance abuse. The primary community we serve is Ozark County, which is located in the southern portion of Missouri and has a population of about 9,723 people, according to the 2010 census. We recognize the danger substance abuse poses to our families, community, and our way of life, which is why our mission is to provide awareness, promote skills and act as a community facilitator for people who need treatment or support.

 

Our prevention group’s focus is to provide active education to prevent the misuse of addictive substances. We actively participate in community events to provide information to community members. For example, we host booths at various social functions where task members are present to provide information to the community. We also work closely with school administrators to bring educational resources directly to students. Most recently, we have gone into local schools and presented the dangers of vaping. In addition, we have brought Narcan training to our local schools and are working to have all first responders and fire department members trained. Our prevention group works hard to seek out opportunities to engage with the community and provide education and resources to bring awareness.

 

 The treatment group includes our local law enforcement who bring the mission of the task force with them when they are handling substance abuse issues in their daily jobs. We have produced a lengthy resource packet that provides treatment center information that can be used to aid people who are seeking treatment. Many of these organizations are faith-based and recommended to the courts for people who are in trouble due to substance abuse issues. We support local recovery meetings for people who are on their journeys to recovery. We just opened up two Action Recovery Centers (ARC) - one for men and one for women in Gainesville.   These are sober living facilities which help those in addiction through a structured and safe environment.

 

The task force meets once a month.  There are elected board members including a President, Vice President, Treasurer, and Secretary. The President and Vice Presidents oversee all the projects that are done by the members. The treasurer is in charge of managing the budget. The secretary records meeting minutes and handles communication matters among the board and members.

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