MILWAUKEE — Milwaukee County is trying to plug a $46 million hole in next year's budget, and one of the programs facing a funding cut is the First Step Community Recovery Center.
People who say that the program saved their lives are speaking out, hoping the county executive will reconsider.
"We have anywhere from 30 to 40 people daily that we are detoxing," Geneva Fuller, a counselor at First Step, said during a protest held Thursday morning.
Fuller has seen for herself the difference their detox program can make.
"We can save lives. I've seen people. They come back and say if it wasn't for this place, if it wasn't for you," Fuller said.
One of them is Frederick Brookshire. He went through the program and came to the protest today to help keep it open for others.
Watch: Milwaukee County's First Step detox center faces closure
"Today I've got four years clean. And life is good," Brookshire said.
"And I thank this place. It needs to be open."
According to the detox center, it helped 1,800 people last year recover from addiction. Without county funding, counselors say it will close, putting 80 people out of work and hundreds of people at risk.
"We are fighting for people's lives. I've worked there for two years now. Without us, people would be dying on the street," Fuller said.
Milwaukee County has a $2.9 million contract with First Step, an amount slated to disappear in next year's budget. It's a cut patients like Frederick call the wrong move.
"It don't need to be cut — shut down. There needs to be more detox in Milwaukee, Wisconsin," Brookshire said.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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