Message from the President, November 2017

It is time for the Greensboro Bar Association to heed the call of our state’s legal leaders. According to the Greensboro Police Department, more than 20 people have died from opioid overdoses in Greensboro this year. In 2015, both Guilford County and North Carolina as a whole saw approximately 73% increases in opioid deaths as compared to 2005, with Guilford County ranking fourth in the state for total opioid-related deaths in 2015.

“There is an opioid epidemic that we ignore at our peril.”

-Mark W. Merritt, President, North Carolina State Bar
  The North Carolina State Bar Journal, Fall 2017

“Many of you have witnessed the tragic consequences of this epidemic in your local communities.  Now, the legal community must do its part to address this crisis.   . . . Our communities have too much at stake to remain passive in the face of this growing threat.  Let’s do all we can to protect all North Carolinians from drug overdoses and prescription drug abuse.”

-Chief Justice Mark Martin
  2017 State of the North Carolina Judiciary

Please join us at our next lunch meeting on Thursday, November 16th at 12:30 p.m. in the Empire Room for an important discussion regarding the impact of the opioid crisis on Greensboro, and what we, as citizens and lawyers, can do to help.  The meeting will feature two speakers from the Greensboro Police Department, Lieutenant T.D. Moore, Vice Narcotics, and Jenny Caviness, Community Engagement Manager. Our very own President-Elect, the Honorable Teresa Vincent, will give her perspective as a presiding judge in Guilford County’s Drug Treatment Court. Bring your experiences, your ideas, and your questions!

On a lighter note, I hope you will all plan to attend our Membership Committee’s first Mix-n-Mingle of the year!  The event will take place at Joymongers Brewing Company, 576 North Eugene Street in downtown Greensboro, on Thursday, November 9th at 5:00 p.m., and will feature a visit from the Urban Street Grill food truck.  I am sure we can all think of a colleague who is not a current member of the GBA, but should be! The Membership Committee is offering a prize for the member who brings the most prospective members to the event!

I wish all of you a safe and happy Thanksgiving!