One Year of Community Commitment and Life

A letter from PWR's Overdose Prevention Center Director, Ashley Perry

Dear Community Members,

Last month marked one year since we opened the nation’s first state-sanctioned overdose prevention center. When we gathered for our ribbon cutting, we said the day should be a celebration—not simply because we were opening a building, but because we were making history together. On that day, we proudly named what this space was meant to do: break generational chains of trauma caused by preventable overdoses and affirm that here in little Rhode Island, the lives of people who use drugs matter.

One year later, that commitment has become a living, breathing reality.

The overdose prevention center was created for one simple and urgent reason: no one should die from an overdose. In our first year of operation, we welcomed 720 individuals across 7,750 visits.Behind each visit is a person—a neighbor, a family member, and a person deserving of dignity.

Through a peer-led, harm-reduction model, our team intervened in 182 life-threatening situations and prevented 96 potentially fatal opioid overdoses. Dozens of people are still here today because of this work—able to return home, reconnect with loved ones, and consider next steps toward stability and health.

From the beginning, this center was meant to represent something larger. For communities like the South Side of Providence, who were long labeled, surveilled, and punished under the so-called “war on drugs,”this space stands as proof that another response is possible: one rooted in strength, resilience, as well as the understanding that addiction is not a moral failure and poverty is not a crime.

None of this would have been possible without our community. We are deeply grateful to the participants who trusted us, to the peer staff whose lived experience and leadership save lives every day, and to the partners, advocates, and neighbors who believed in this program from the start. Your support turned what once felt impossible into a life-saving reality.

While preventing overdose remains our core mission, our impact would not be possible without the range of wraparound services we offer. From access to showers and hygiene supplies, to the 2900 clinical  visits provided by our partner VICTA, to the case management services, these services offer care without judgement, showing people they deserve health and love rather than shame and punishment.  

This first year unfolded during an especially difficult political moment for poor and marginalized people, including those we serve and those we employ. In a time when many systems feel punitive or unwelcoming, this center has been a rare place where people are met with care, where lived experience is valued, and where hope exists- even in the face of uncertainty. 

As we reflect on this year, we are reminded why this work is so deeply personal. Our collective grief brought us here. We continue to honor the fathers, mothers, sisters, brothers, and loved ones lost too soon to overdose. Their lives are not forgotten:they live on in this space and in our ongoing commitment to prevent further loss.

As we enter our second year, we remain committed to strengthening our services, supporting the people who make this work possible, and continuing to show that communities can respond to overdoses with care rather than stigma.

Thank you for standing with us through this historic first year. We look forward to continuing this work together and continuing to save lives.

With gratitude,

Ashley Perry
Deputy Director/ OPC Director
Project Weber/RENEW