Honoring and Recognizing One Day At A Time (ODAAT) for Twenty-five Years of Dedicated Service to the Prevention of Drug Abuse.

WHEREAS

, One Day At A Time (ODAAT) celebrated twenty-five years of service to the community on February 7, 2009; and

WHEREAS

, One Day At A Time began in 1983 as a residential peer counseling and substance abuse recovery support program that has over the past 25 years, increased its scope to address issues of HIV/AIDS and homelessness; and

WHEREAS

, Today, ODAAT provides transitional housing, peer support and mentoring, case management, rapid HIV testing, HIV prevention outreach, and HIV/AIDS medical case management; and

WHEREAS

, Reverend Henry T. Wells, founder of One Day At A Time, says “Our mission is to save lives. Our foundations are respect, spirituality, and love for others and ourselves, which sets the groundwork to build on and recover, one day at a time. If we don’t have that, we will not survive.” and

WHEREAS

, Reverend Wells’ son, Mel Wells, who is One Day At A Time’s current President, echoes these sentiments. “We are proud to have helped thousands of low-income and homeless individuals on their journey to recovery over the past twenty-five years. The support we have received from the community and the success of our clients prove to me that God really does have soldiers.” and

WHEREAS

, ODAAT reaches 26,000 individuals annually and in 2008, tested over 475 individuals for HIV, provided case management for nearly 600 clients and provided addiction recovery support for over 350 people. Over 60% of ODAAT’s new addiction clients achieved and maintained sobriety for six months or more; now therefore, be it

RESOLVED,

That the Council of the City of Philadelphia hereby Honors and Recognizes One Day At A Time for Twenty-five Years of Dedicated Service to the Prevention of Drug Abuse.

FURTHER RESOLVED,

That an Engrossed copy of this resolution be presented to One Day At A Time as a Sincere Expression of City Council’s Appreciation and Recognition.

End