GREENFIELD — For Paul McNeil, the coordinator of the Northampton Prevention Coalition, work is personal.
Growing up as one of eight children in a family touched by both mental health problems and substance abuse issues, the efforts of a network of passionate social workers and community members that strove to help families like his, giving them the chance to rise above the adversity and tear down the barriers to success, left a lasting impression that eventually led him to a career in public health.
Now, he’ll head up a local organization that’s become a fixture in the fight against substance abuse, addiction and drug overdose in Franklin County and the North Quabbin region.
McNeil, 34, has been chosen as the next director of the regional Opioid Task Force, filling the job left vacant by outgoing director Marisa Hebble.
Hebble, who has held the role since 2014, recently took a job with the state Executive Office of the Trial Court, where she will coordinate a new statewide project to help communities foster better connections between their criminal justice system and their addiction treatment system.
McNeil said his entry into the field of public health actually sprang from his previous career as an English teacher. In that role, he became more interested in positive youth development than traditional classroom instruction, he said, and soon took a new job as the director of the Railroad Street Youth Project in Great Barrington, a drop-in center for at-risk teens.
“That got my foot in the door in western Massachusetts and in community development,” McNeil said. From there, he went on to head up the Pittsfield Prevention Partnership, a group working to reduce substance abuse among their community, in 2012.
“That was primary prevention,” he said. “A lot more focus on marijuana, alcohol and other drugs. It was about delaying use among middle- and high-schoolers, community and parent education and supplying the school system with evidence-based (prevention) curriculum. It was a perfect blend of science and people. I fell in love with it.”
In 2014, McNeil came to Northampton to fill Hebble’s own previous position when she came to Greenfield. There, he managed federal grants and marshaled the community’s resources to educate parents about how to talk to their children about drug abuse and other prevention activities.
As the Opioid Task Force director, McNeil said he’s excited to work on bringing sober housing options to the region, understanding trauma, and finding better alternatives for those suffering from mental health issues to get help before resorting to an emergency room visit or becoming involved with the criminal justice system.
He said he plans to bring his firmly rooted understanding of substance abuse prevention strategies and data skills to bear for the job.
“Now, we need to overlay that on a very severely stressed community affected by opioids in a way I’ve never been part of,” McNeil said. “The groundwork for it has been laid by the champions and leaders over the past few years, and I need to learn a lot about Franklin County, about who’s who and what the community’s values are.”
The Task Force’s leadership said they’re looking forward to working with McNeil and welcome the energy he brings to the job.
“(Paul) stood out during the interviews; we had some great finalists, but he showed energy and enthusiasm like Marisa had for keeping the community together in terms of subcommittees and all the work that’s been going on,” said John Merrigan, the Register of Probate and Task Force founder and co-chairman. “There’s some big shoes to fill with Marisa’s departure, but the good part is that she’ll be close by to help him break into the new position.”
“I’m very excited,” said Franklin County Sheriff Christopher Donelan. “I met with him the other day, he’s got a terrific background, lots of energy, and I think he’s going to make this a seamless transition.”
Donelan said the organization plans to “drill down deeper” into the work it has been doing moving forward.
“We just received word yesterday that Rep. Paul Mark has successfully secured our funding for another year,” Donelan said.
McNeil starts May 9.
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