Mountain Top Cares Coalition has received a $200,000 federal planning grant to identify gaps in addiction recovery services and develop a plan to reach more people across Greene County, organization officials said this week.
The nonprofit will receive $100,000 annually through August 2028 through the Health Resources and Services Administration’s Rural Communities Opioid Response Program. It was one of 40 recipients nationwide and the only one in New York, officials said.
“When we can bring federal and private funding to an area like this — Greene County — it’s pretty big,” said Patrick Magee, the organization’s executive director. “It’s not a very large county. It gets directly into those rural areas.”
The grant will support coordination with groups and agencies, including the Greene County Department of Health and the Greene County Sheriff’s Office, and data collection to guide future work, Magee said.
“It’s designed to try to find the gaps and help us make a plan to close those gaps, those service gaps, and provide those services throughout the county, not just in localized spots,” he said.
The organization could then seek federal funding to carry out the plan, depending on what grants are available.
“In two years, if the implementation grant is offered, we would apply for that using the data we collect here in the next two years,” Magee said.
A separate $125,000 grant from the Highmark Blue Fund will support expanded services beginning Jan. 1, 2027, Magee said. The money will help the organization hire additional peer advocates and offer more support groups and events in more locations. The coalition has also pledged to help 50 people with job readiness.
Mountain Top Cares formed in 2017 as a grassroots response to the opioid crisis on the mountaintop. Operating out of a converted church on North Lake Road in Haines Falls, it provides nonclinical services, including recovery coaching, family support, Narcan training, referrals, support groups and help navigating treatment and public systems.
The organization serves an average of 160 people a year, Magee said. Two certified recovery peer advocates provide one-on-one support, and volunteers assist with outreach.
Peer advocates draw on personal experience with substance use and professional training to help people navigate recovery and daily life. Their work can include helping people get to appointments, find housing, navigate paperwork and connect with jobs, as The Overlook reported in March.
Greene County’s average annual rate of opioid-involved overdose deaths between 2014 and 2024 was 24 per 100,000 residents, about 1.3 times the statewide rate excluding New York City, according to Greene County Public Health. The county ranked fourth among the 57 counties outside New York City for its opioid-involved overdose death rate in 2024.
Reported overdoses have declined since peaking in 2021, though county health officials warn that a toxic and changing drug supply poses a risk. Greene County recorded 70 fatal overdoses between 2020 and 2025; 90% occurred in private homes, and people ages 30 to 49 accounted for the majority of deaths.
Reaching more remote mountaintop communities is essential, Magee said. Social isolation, limited transportation and difficulties finding housing and jobs can complicate recovery. Stigma can also discourage people from seeking help.
“They’re remote towns, there’s stigma,” he said. “We’re trying to knock that down, neighbor-helping-neighbor kind of thing, and address those rural barriers.”
Those challenges helped spur the coalition’s formation, said Jonathan Gross, its founder and board president.
“We knew that there was a devastating toll here on the mountaintop,” Gross said. “I would get calls from family members who just were not sure where to turn.”
The coalition is working to extend its reach into communities near the county’s western edge.
“We have found that we have had very strong cooperation and involvement in communities like Tannersville, Hunter, and Haines Falls,” Gross said. “That’s where we focused to begin with. Now we’re looking to work in the more rural areas such as Lexington, Ashland, Prattsville, and we hope to do even more work in Windham, as well.”
Some outreach is underway. Gross said the organization presented to the Prattsville Town Board last year, and town officials welcomed further involvement.
Earning residents’ trust takes time, he said. The staff and peer advocates’ work is helping more people learn about the coalition and its services.
“There are so many people on the mountaintop that are hidden away, that are suffering, and don’t know where to turn,” Gross said. “We want to be a resource that is trusted with the resources available for them to turn to.”
Connor Greco is a staff reporter for The Overlook covering Windham, Hunter, and surrounding Greene County communities. Send correspondence to connor@theoverlooknews.com.
