[INSPRATIONAL MUSIC STING] - Hi, everyone.

Steve Adubato.

We kick off the program with our longtime friend, Assemblywoman Shavonda Sumter, who is, in fact, the chair of the Assembly Community Development and Affairs Committee, and the President and CEO of Children's Aid and Family Services.

Good to see you, Shavonda.

- Always good to see you, Steve, and thank you for having me.

- Always.

Hey, listen.

We'll put up the website of the organization.

Tell everyone what it is and the folks you help.

- Children's Aid and Family Services, where I am honored to be the President and CEO, hits all my sweet spots of mission-driven work, taking care of vulnerable children, families, and adults.

We serve individuals with adoption, for over 125 years we're celebrating.

We also support folks in recovery and who need supports for prevention in addiction and impacted by the opioid crisis, and we've been doing that line of business for 45 years.

And we also serve individuals, adults with disabilities.

We have a day habilitation program and 19 group homes in northern New Jersey.

- Let's do this.

The website will continue to be up.

- Yes.

- Your resources, did it come from the state government?

- We have 85% of our resources that are contracted with the state.

The state entrusts us with the responsibility of making sure that the valuable resources have impact on those individuals, children, and families that have the greatest need.

I'm very proud of the work that we do.

Most recently, we were also awarded the NJ4S grant to service 170 schools in Bergen County to teach prevention so our young people will know there's other healthy options for coping with stress and mental illness.

- Since you talked about that, let's talk about the opioid crisis.

How bad is it and what needs to be done, not only in terms of your organization involved, but also then let's talk about the role of state government, public policy, the opioid crisis, please?

- So the opioid crisis has afflicted not only New Jersey, but across the country.

We work in partnership 'cause government can't do it all by itself.

We really need partners.

Horizon.

The Horizon Foundation has been a partner with us to reach families and provide support for those who are impacted by the affliction of opioid abuse and use.

We try to limit the shame and the stigma that comes with it and offer free Narcan and training on how to safely administer it because it's actually a life-saving treatment for individuals who may experience an overdose where a opioid can be laced also with fentanyl and it causes so much harm and trauma to families.

So we work with family support for the full family to help them to conquer and move safely through these challenging addictions.

- Talk about this.

You are Paterson, - I am.

- everything that is Paterson, and since I'm born and raised in Newark, I have an affinity for those who are very much connected to cities in our state.

- Yes.

- And so when you talk about the opioid crisis, I want you to talk about how bad it is in Paterson, and B, I wanna talk about something really positive going on in Paterson that you've had a strong hand in, a really positive thing.

First, how does the opioid crisis disproportionately affect a community like Paterson?

- So for Paterson, and that's my hometown, we've been impacted by every drug crisis, from the crack cocaine era to heroin being some of the cheapest and purest heroin that you can find in the country being found in Paterson, to now the opioid crisis and people being on the street and not receiving access to care treatment and learning healthy ways.

In Paterson, what I'm most proud of now, with the support of government officials, St. Joseph's Hospital, public community partners, we actually have street teams that are actually going into the community.

We have to reach people where they are.

We can no longer sit in our offices and in treatment facilities and believe that people are gonna come to us.

The pandemic taught us that we need to go into the community.

So more of that is happening now and I'm hoping for a greater impact in people receiving the services and treatment that they need to live.

- I need to talk to you about New Jersey Transit and some of the issues there in just a second, but give us 30 seconds on the really positive development in Paterson having to do with the refurbishing of an historic, important sports related facility, please.

- So Hinchliffe Stadium, you'll see a picture in my background.

It is a crown jewel.

We worked on it, it was a over $30 million restoration that we spent the time during the pandemic to revitalize.

That's actually now a field of dreams where our young people can play sports exposition games, and students are coming from across the state to play there.

It's actually where the Negro Leagues were played.

We're only the second stadium in the country.

And the exhibition hall will be up next year to show some memorabilia.

Box car racing.

And you actually have trails and pathways to the Great Falls, which is a national park established in 2016 by President Obama.

- Now did the great Larry Doby, from Paterson, the first African American to play in the American League in baseball after Jackie Robinson broke the color line right before that in baseball, did he play in this field, on this field?

- Larry Doby played in this field.

I'm told he hit it out the park.

(laughs) - I mean, you're talking about outta the stadium onto the streets, - Outta the stadium - of Paterson.

- So it might be in the falls somewhere.

- Yeah, right.

Do this.

Okay, now after we do that really positive thing, I gotta talk to you about New Jersey Transit.

How serious is the funding problem at New Jersey Transit?

A and B, how does it affect service, particularly for people who rely on public transportation in New Jersey, please?

- So Mayor Ras Baraka and I penned a letter to the editor on the reliance on public transportation that impact thousands of people, from commuters to work to grocery shopping to our students taking New Jersey Transit to get to school.

Reducing the lines and access is a danger to the economy, let alone to people's ability to take care of their basic needs.

It affects the long-term needs as well as short-term needs.

So I want us to be very conscious of access to transit and what it means for our individuals to get to where they need to be so that they can build their quality of life themselves.

- That is Shavonda Sumter.

She's a state assemblywoman.

How long you been in the legislature?

- So 12 years and I just got reelected uncontested so I'm so thankful to the voters and to my district.

- That's on November the 7th that happened.

Congratulations.

The chair of the Assembly Community Development and Affairs Committee and also the President and CEO of Children's Aid and Family Services.

Shavonda, all the best.

Every time you join us, we learn something new and we appreciate it.

Thank you so much.

- Thank you, Steve.

Be safe.

- Same to you.

Stay with us.

We'll be right back.

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