BCI's Thanksgiving Photos

We've posted some pics from this year's food basket giveaway and lunchtime feast for our clients. Once again it was a great time for a great cause. Click here to view the full album.

Photos From the 3rd Annual Sober Softball Tournament

On Friday, September 19, 2008 Brandywine Counseling sponsored our third annual Sober Softball Tournament in honor of Recovery Month. Treatment staff, clients, friends, and family gathered at Sports At the Beach in Georgetown and competed in teams of nine. It was a day of games, food, friends, and sober fun.

The tournament was a great success and a lot of fun!!! We had about eighty players and fans turn out for the event. Thresholds, Aquila, Hudson Health, Fellowship, The Lighthouse, and Brandywine Counseling all played hard. The championship game came down to Aquila and Hudson Health. Hudson pulled ahead to take the lead and won the whole tournament!! Thank you to every one who came out and cheered, played, cooked, and supported our third annual softball tournament. See you all next year!

Click here to view our album of photos.

Photos from the Recovery Month Picnic and Open House

About 50 guests gathered to celebrate recovery and the opening of BCI Alpha's newest location on September 18, 2008. The weather was sunny with a nice breeze! We enjoyed a barbeque, raffle, bake-off, and educational displays. We want to thank all the individuals and businesses who donated items or cooked food. And great job to Monalee West who spearheaded the planning of this event.

Click here to view our album of photos from the picnic, as well as take a look inside our new office at the Edgemoor Community Center.

An "Opioid Hit" From Your BlackBerry?

We in the addictions field like to say everyone is addicted to something, whether it be illegal drugs, alcohol, food, or caffeine. What about information? This article says that exposure to new and interesting information releases opioids in the brain, just as heroin does. We are biologically wired to seek out stimulating knowledge, news, or gossip because it gives us an “opioid hit.” But can this craving for information become harmful when done to excess, like compulsively checking your BlackBerry?

I am not a BlackBerry user myself, but I do have a habit of interrupting whatever I’m working on to open a new email. Even if I’m in the middle of something important, as soon as that email notification pops up, I need to find out what it is. Because you never know, it might be more something important than what I’m doing! Usually, it isn’t. But now I know why I do this. Darn you, opioids!

Update: They Paved The Road!

OMG! They fixed our road! They fixed the road to the Newark Center! No more potholes that will eat your car!



If you're not a Newark client with firsthand experience traveling Brookhill Drive, read this post to see why this is such a cause for celebration.

Wow, I never thought I would see the day! We don’t know who did it, but thank you! These repairs were so overdue and make such a difference.

So, do you think we'll see our no-show rate improve?

Open House Tomorrow!

Denise, the Lighthouse Program Director, sent me a bunch of pictures yesterday in preparation for tomorrow's open house. Lots of them were stuff I had seen before - construction, furniture, more construction, more furniture. But I must say there was one in particular that caught my attention.



Who was this mysterious character? Where did he come from? For what purpose was he standing there in the corner? I had to know.

Denise informed me it is, in fact, a growth chart for the kids to see how tall they are. It came from Closic's Furniture. Take a closer look and you can see the ruler.



So, yes, there's a perfectly logical explanation why you may see a lighthouse smiling back at you when you join us tomorrow for our open house. We like to have fun here, but there's always a method to our madness. Our residents are in good hands.

Annual Door Decorating Contest

One of our holiday traditions at BCI is our staff decorating their office doors. At the Lancaster Center, this always gets the staff and clients into the spirit of the season. I was asked to be a judge this year to pick the winner of the contest. Most of the entries came from the Bridge-Perinatal unit. There was lots of creativity this year, but in the end we went with the most original and the most fun.

The winner: Valerie Brown

Besides incorporating lights, Val’s Santas sing “Jingle Bells” in a motorized, yet cheerful voice to the patient waiting room. Scary? Perhaps. But it brought a smile to our faces, and isn’t that what Christmas is all about?

Honorable Mention: Dawn Mason and Robin Stewart
Dawn and Robin also get points for including lights in their display. We could tell they put a lot of time into the attractive flowers as well.

The rest:

Teresa Evans
Only a month on the job, and she shows she can decorate like a veteran!

Kathy Kelley
She wins the cultural competency award for incorporating several major religions.

Darniese Banks
Darniese conveys the theme of love, peace, and joy with a two-sided display.

Jenn Kutney
Check out the great ribbon. Duct tape – is there anything it can’t do?

Thanks to all who participated this year. From the BCI family to yours, have a wonderful holiday!