Sault groups that helps those battling opioid addiction is on the move

Sault Ste. Marie -

A group in Sault Ste. Marie that has been helping people escape opioid addiction for the last decade is on the move. Save Our Young Adults (SOYA) is relocating from its downtown depot to a site the group's founder said will allow them to serve the public better.

Connie Raynor-Elliott said the move from the depot on Gore Street to the former Verdi Hall on Queen Street West will allow for expanded programming and more volunteers.

"It's about four times bigger, we'll be only 10 minutes away from where we are today and we'll be able to assist more people including everybody in our demographic and a few extras," Raynor-Elliott said. "We're quite excited over it."

SOYA is moving into the same building as the temporary homeless shelter announced last week by the Sault Ste. Marie District Social Services Administration Board.

City Coun. Lisa Vezeau-Allen, a member of the Social Equity Committee of the DSSAB and founder of Grocer 4 Good, said her group will help with the transition.

"So, on Saturdays they're going to be at the rear of Grocer 4 Good, we do have a rear exit, and doing some of their outreach from 12 to 3 every Saturday starting this Saturday," said Vezeau-Allen. "We're happy to be able to accommodate them that way."

Vezeau-Allen and Raynor-Elliott said this is a good move for SOYA, since it places the group closer to those who rely on its services. They add it could also attract more people in need.

"They'll have a different catchment area where more people might engage with SOYA that didn't prior," said Vezeau-Allen. "So I think it's going to be a win-win, and I think it'll be a great compliment to what's going into the new location at the Verdi with the DSSAB."

"Jamestown is there as well," said Raynor-Elliott. "We have a lot of people from Jamestown that come up and I think it's just going to serve a lot more people."

The new SOYA facility is set to open sometime this month.