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With its mission of advocating against drug criminalization by promoting harm reduction, recovery and fact-based drug policies, Help Not Handcuffs got an added boost last week.

Through its Community Connections program, Wells Fargo made a $1,000 charitable contribution to the all-volunteer nonprofit.

“At a time when donations from the public and private sectors are down due to the economy, we truly appreciate the support Wells Fargo has provided,” CEO and Founder Randy Thompson [at right] said in written news statement. “We will use this grant to further our community education and engagement efforts.”

The grant, which is awarded through the recommendation of local branch managers, is part of the $46,000 awards given throughout the Southern Jersey – Jersey Shore region.

“Many of our Wells Fargo team members also volunteer or are impacted by Help Not Handcuffs in some way,” Zach Finn, Oakhurst Wells Fargo Branch Manager said. “We’re proud to help the nonprofits serve our communities wherever we can.”

A total of $140,000 in Community Connections grants is slated to be distributed throughout the months of July and August in Southern New Jersey, officials said.

“Our local stores see which nonprofits are out in the community making a difference every day,”

Wells Fargo Jersey Shore Area President Susan Modri-Smith said. “We use this as an opportunity to celebrate and say thank you to Help Not Handcuffs for all of the value they have provided to our community over the past year.”

Thompson said Help Not Handcuffs will be taking on several ambitious endeavors this year.

“In addition to working towards sustainability, our priorities include continuing efforts towards marijuana legalization, removing criminal penalties and forced treatment for petty drug possession/consumption – Drug War tactics, which have cost us too many lives,” he said.

“We will be doing outreach to educate how the narrow approach of treatment and abstinence is orienting our social service support system to be more harmful than it is helpful,” Thompson added. “We also will be undertaking a major initiative to raise awareness of the correlation between drug criminalization and police violence.”

This year, the organization’s Annual New Jersey Celebrates Recovery event be held on Sept. 18 at the Middletown Arts Center.

“On the local level we are working with the City of Asbury Park to activate our 10 year inactive Needle–Exchange Program as well as implement a Civilian Review Board for Police oversight and accountability,” Thompson said.

[In feature photo from left: Brenda Ross-Dulan, Randy Thompson, Zach Finn, Susan Modri-Smith]

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