TAKE BACK BRIDGEWATER

BRIDGEWATER — When Bridgewater resident Doug Miller was forced to explain to his 5-year-old son what the word “METH” meant — spray-painted onto a rock pile north of town and paired with an arrow pointed toward Bridgewater — he knew something had to be done.

“That was the point that I had had enough,” said Miller. “I spent the next few days talking with residents, neighbors and people around town, and everybody said the same thing: ‘Somebody should do something.’”

But who? And what? According to data from the Center for Disease Control (CDC), the nation’s growing opioid crisis was responsible for the deaths of 146 Iowans, and nearly 30,000 Americans in 2016. Every day, approximately 90 people suffer opioid-related deaths.

“And so I decided,” said Miller, “that if everybody thought that something needed to be done, but nobody was willing to do something about it, then I was going to let it be known that I wanted an organizational meeting to see if we could form something.

“Something like a neighborhood watch,” Miller continued, “or some kind of group to see what kind of actions we could take in Bridgewater to fight this element — to fight these people that thought it was OK to move into Bridgewater — to sell drugs so blatantly in town.”

Getting organized

The result was the formation of 501(c)(3) non profit Take Back Bridgewater, Iowa. The organization operates primarily through its Facebook page, “Take Back Bridgewater, Iowa,” and has been active in the city of about 200 since late February.

“We’ve held four public forums,” said Miller. One with council members, the sheriff’s department, law officials and a drug councelor. We asked, ‘What have other communities done? What has worked?’ And we found out that it’s a much bigger problem than just Bridgewater.”

Miller describes Take Back Bridgewater as a neighborhood watch and educational group. The group hopes to educate the community on what kinds of problems methamphetamine and opioids can lead to, both on an individual level and for the community in general.

“We’ve talked to local law enforcement as well,” said Miller. “And a lot of these things tie in with local thefts, and vandalism and things. And we found out that a large percentage of related problems in Adair County are in some way drug related.

“What we’ve found out,” said Miller, “is that the gas that was stolen out of my lawn mower, for example, is connected with the tiller that’s missing next door, is connected to the refrigerator that was broken into in somebody’s garage and those types of things. A lot of it is connected.”

So far, the organization has been funded entirely through community donations, though possibilities for grants or other funding avenues are being explored.

“We are current on everything we’ve got,” explained Miller, “meaning we’re not running a deficit. But at the same time, we don’t have much to do more forums and more things.”

Christmas fundraising effort

To raise money for future projects, Take Back Bridgewater is putting on a Christmas wreath sale for the holiday season. Throughout southwest Iowa, the organization will be selling Christmas wreaths to raise money.

The wreaths are 22 to 24 inches wide, and locally made of fur, balsam and cedar. They will also contain pine cones and a weatherproof bow. The wreaths are priced at $25.

To order a wreath, visit Take Back Bridgewater’s Facebook page, and contact a listed seller. Those interested may also contact Miller directly at (641)-745-5108. The wreaths will be delivered beginning Tuesday, Nov. 21.

“So that’s currently what we’ve got going on,” said Miller. “But just recently, Congressman Young mentioned us in some testimony he gave in Washington, and we just continue to be diligent. So we know that we aren’t just keeping our eyes closed and our mouths shut, anymore.

“And we do know we’re making some headway on this,” explained Miller. “We know now that the county prosecutor has heard us, and the magistrate has heard us, and that though we don’t necessarily have the answers to everything, we’re at least finally getting the questions out there and making a difference.”

National exposure

On Oct. 11, Congressman David Young (IA-03) testified before the U.S. House Committee on Energy and Commerce at a congressional hearing on efforts to combat the opioid crisis. Young specifically focused on the work being done by Take Back Bridgewater.

“I want to highlight the actions the community of Bridgewater, Iowa, has undertaken in the last year to take back their town,” Young said in his testimony.

“As drug use in the area slowly started to rise in the community,” explained Young, “which relies on the county sheriff’s office to keep them safe, the residents were unable, but not unwilling, to stop the influx of drugs into their town.

“Residents of Bridgewater started to see cars coming into town with out of state license plates, and from counties across the state. As the cars came, so did the crime.

“I visited Bridgewater in April,” continued Young, “to meet with residents in that church basement as they began their mission to make their town safe again. I studied their faces. I listened intently. And their mission is my mission.”

According to the Congressman’s website, Young has been a consistent supporter of federal efforts and resources to combat the opioid crisis.

Young is the only member of the Iowa Congressional delegation on the House Appropriations Committee to have funded programs to combat opioid abuse.

He also supported legislation in the previous Congress — called the Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act — which was the first major bill to address addiction in 40 years. The bill passed Congress, and was signed into law by President Obama in July 22 of that same year.

“He’s been good for us on getting our word out,” said Miller, of Congressman Young. “Because we’re such a small entity, funding is huge. So he’s been helpful in means of publicity.

“But local radio stations, local TV stations and local newsprint — they’ve been our best resource,” said Miller. “So he sort of jumped on the bandwagon halfway through, but we appreciate that he’s giving us a national light on the problem.

“We certainly didn’t ask to be the poster-child for drugs in the United States,” said Miller, “but if we can help solve our problem in Adair County, then we’ll do what we can.”

Law enforcement

Since Take Back Bridgewater organized in February, the Adair County Sheriff’s office has met with Bridgewater residents on several occasions, according to Adair County Sheriff Jeff Vandewater.

“Bridgewater is a tiny little community,” said Vandewater. “They try to watch out for their neighbors — you know — they take care of each other. And a lot of the stuff that’s being discussed now is stuff that they’ve always been doing.

“And they have old-school values, you know,” Vandewater continued. “They just want to take care of their neighbors, and live in a quiet, peaceful area.”

Vandewater explained the situation in Bridgewater has been improving of recent, as the sheriff’s office has been able to make progress in town, with the help of Iowa State Troopers and the Cass County Sheriff’s office.

“I think we’ve finally got things calmed down,” said Vandewater. “It’s been a relatively un-noteworthy summer, which in my business is good.

“But basically, it just got to the point where they (the Bridgewater residents) were frustrated,” said Vandewater.

“And there was frustration with the court system, and the punishments that were or weren’t being handed out. I think the system is just frustrating for a lot of people. I mean it takes us a lifetime of working with the system, and still it sometimes throws us curves. It’s just the way things tend to be.

“And Bridgewater is just really tiny,” Vandewater continued. “We all, for the most part, knew who the players were. It’s not like there was any shockers involved. It’s just, you know, watching out for your own property, taking care of things. Don’t make it easy for someone who is stealing things.”

According to Miller, the fight is about having the right mindset more than anything else.

“At this point, we know that we are not just individually standing in our houses, shaking our fists and wishing the problem away,” Miller concluded. “We’re actually doing something about it, and picking up our phones if we see something going on.

“We’re fighting for our community.”