We talked to: Tapestry's Harm Reduction

For over 50 years, Tapestry has been a leading expert in the community on critical public health issues. They provide access without stigma, which means meeting people where they are at and respecting their choices while providing compassionate health care, support services, and education for safer practices. We were so pleased to speak with Katy Lessard, Program Manager of Tapestry's Hampshire and Franklin County Harm Reduction locations. With a passion for her job and an amazing team, Katy serves our community with joy, generosity, and dedication.

Hi, Katy! Please tell me a bit about your role at Tapestry’s Northampton Harm Reduction location and about what services you offer.

I started working here about three years ago as a Care Coordinator. I quickly moved into the position of manager in Northampton, and have since been added as manager to the Greenfield location as well. They felt like I was managing Northampton so well that I could take on a second site, so I am now officially the Program Manager for both Hampshire and Franklin counties.

Since I started here, I was able to add syringe access to Easthampton, and recently got approved for access in the Hadley area as well. Our services also include offering Narcan, test strips, smoking kits, and more. I also saw a need for food access for unhoused people who are dwelling in encampments. People would come in asking for food, and our staff would give people the lunches they’d brought to work. I decided to try to connect with the Food Bank of Western MA to see if we could partner with them. After a year of inspections, approval, and other logistics, we are now officially part of the Food Bank. People can freely come in once a week, and whatever we have on offer in our pantry, they are welcome to take. It has been one of my favorite projects so far—I love being able to help people who might not have an EBT card or a birth certificate gain access to the food they need and deserve.

We also accept clothing donations, which are really appreciated by unhoused people and those who are in need of some new, clean items to wear.  Other services of ours include STI and Hepatitis C testing, with walk-in hours from 8AM to 11:30PM daily. We offer free coffee to anyone in the morning,  hand out hygiene items, do outreach regularly, and offer IM (intramuscular) supplies for people who are transitioning. We also have a variety of overdose awareness events coming up, and we regularly conduct NARCAN training with businesses in the area. We assist people who are ready to stop using by calling various places and getting them into detox/sober residential programs. Our Mobile Health Van is set up in Pulaski Park every Thursday, and we find that people are really utilizing it.

There is often a negative view of Harm Reduction—people think we are supplying individuals with tools to continue using. We want to reframe that in a positive way and show that we are meeting people where they are at. You can’t force someone to stop using; they need to be ready and come to that place on their own. We really want the community to understand that we are here to help in whatever way we can.

We have also been collaborating a lot with other organizations, such as Hampshire Hope and DCC. If DCC needs assistance from us in some way, we are there. If we need them to offer support when someone is having a crisis at our site, they come right away. It’s really nice to be able to have that support system as we all work to support our communities.

I come from a mental health background. I worked at Providence Hospital in the adolescent psych program for about 12 years, which was a rewarding yet very demanding position. I then moved on to the detox program where I assisted people who were transitioning from using to getting sober. I really enjoyed seeing people make progress from one stage to the next, and showing them how far they’d come.

My team of four here is amazing. They are non-judgmental, passionate about their work, and go above and beyond. I knew the Food Bank would be extra work for us, but I asked them to trust me—that ultimately, it would be worth it—and now they agree that it was the right move.

How do you feel about having a location in downtown Northampton?

I do wish we could be somewhere right on Main Street, as we are located across from the police station. We have a perfectly respectful relationship with them, but some of our participants have a hard time with the location. That said, we’ve been here for 15 years, so we’ll likely stay here for the foreseeable future.  I honestly love my job so much. I get excited coming to work each day, and I know not too many people can say that. I feel really lucky to serve the community through this role, and I’m fortunate to have a team who feels the same way.

What are your "free time" activities?

My partner and I volunteer with Relay for Life, which is a really meaningful and fun experience. We also go downtown regularly and explore. If something pops up from Northampton.live that looks fun/interesting, we’ll do it! We also love spending time as a family—I have a 17-year-old who is about to become a senior at Smith Vocational, so that time together is important.