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By Will Bredderman
Brooklyn Daily
Families and friends had a dynamite time parading in Bay Ridge to raise awareness for a Midwood treatment center helping those struggling with substance abuse.
Some 350 people trekked from Bay Parkway to the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge and back along the Shore Road bike path for the 15th annual Dynamite Youth Walk-a-Thon on Oct. 14, helping to get the word out about the Dynamite Youth Center, an addiction treatment facility on Coney Island Avenue between Avenues N and O.
Coordinator Dawne Marro said that harsh weather along the promenade didn’t prevent the walkers from showing their support for the center.
“It was windy and cold, but that didn’t stop them,” Marro said, noting that the Walk-a-Thon has endured rainstorms in past years. “It’s great that we have so many people in the area who want to come out.”
Marro said that Dynamite Youth Center has helped 13 to 23 year olds work through substance abuse problems for the past 42 years, without using drugs in its treatment program. The Midwood base serves both outpatients and 16 residents, while it runs a larger live-in program in upstate New York.
According to Marro, the idea behind the Walk-a-Thon is to let neighbors know that there’s help available for youth with addiction issues.
“There’s always somebody who knows a kid on drugs, unfortunately,” she said. “And it’s nice when people come up to the table and ask for information and want to bring somebody in.”