WELLFLEET — The Beachcomber bar will hold the eighth annual Live for Lou gala on Oct. 2, a fundraiser for addiction counseling and athletic scholarships and for addiction treatment services.
This year, the charity will make a special gift of $30,000 to Outer Cape Health Service to support the three programs at the clinic that help patients with addiction disorders, said Katrina Kozak, the president of the Live for Lou Fund’s board.
The programs are Office-Based Addiction Treatment (OBAT), the Structured Outpatient Addiction Program (SOAP), and recovery coaching.
OBAT offers medication-assisted treatment; SOAP is an intensive counseling program including support group meetings; and recovery coaching is a peer-to-peer program where people in recovery help others to maintain sobriety.
Along with these programs, Outer Cape Health is working on renovations to its office space next to the Outer Cape Health Services Pharmacy on Route 6 in Wellfleet. The clinic hopes to offer more room for people in recovery to gather, Kozak said.
The medical organization is still working on securing building and zoning permits for the renovation, said Gerry Desautels, senior development and communications officer for Outer Cape Health Services.
The one-time gift is on top of the regular scholarships and grants given to people needing treatment, said Kozak.
The Live for Lou Fund was named for Louie LeBart, who died of an opioid overdose in February 2014. His parents own the Beachcomber. The musical event at the bar and restaurant is held at the end of the season each year.
Since late 2014, when the fund was created, the Live for Lou Fund has raised $382,000 and distributed approximately $235,000, said Kristen O’Malley, president and CEO of the Cape Cod Foundation, which is the umbrella organization that manages the fund.
Outer Cape Health Services offers the most addiction treatment on the remote Outer Cape, which is where the Live for Lou board prioritizes its work, Kozak said.
“We are trying to take the shame away from addition,” Kozak said. “It is a disease that has affected everyone. We on Cape Cod need to take the façade away that addicts are ‘that type of person.’ ” —K.C. Myers
