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Entering Chris’s Room, Bill Wall could almost feel the presence of his son.

“In the room, I could see his smile, his laugh,” Bill Wall said, speaking during a recent dedication for Chris’s Room at SPHS Care Center, 75 East Maiden St., Washington.

Pictured inside Chris’s Room are family members Gina and Bill Wall, Beth Theis, Megan Wall, and Justin Hull.

Chris’s Room provides a safe, quiet environment for clients of the SPHS Care Center treatment programs to visit. Additionally, the adjacent sanctuary room is a peaceful site for reflection and meditation. A kitchen, laundry facility, and shower are also available at the site.

Chris’s Room was made available with donations from his family and friends in his memory of Chris Wall, who lost his battle with the disease of addiction on May 11, 2016.

“And I could see him in the corner, reading a book and helping other people who came in. So, most of all, I think he would have been gratified that this room is there for everybody else and that people have some hope, some refuge from the storm that is their lives,” Bill Wall said.

Most of the art pieces in Chris’s Room were created by people who supported those in recovery or persons in recovery, and the book shelves in the room contain some of Chris’s collection, honoring his love of reading.

The Centers of Excellence offices are adjacent as well as the intake offices and treatment group rooms.

Jason Snyder, special assistant to the secretary of the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services, told the family Chris’s Room is a great way to memorialize him. Snyder lost both of his brothers to the disease of addiction.

“It’s important that we tell accurate stories and we have courageous people like Bill and Beth who are willing to step forward and memorialize their son in such a positive way,” Snyder said.

Snyder commended Chris Wall’s parents, Bill Wall and Beth Theis, for having “the courage to come forward and say, ‘Yes, my son died of this disease of addiction, but he was not defined by the disease of addiction.’”

Kellie McKevitt, executive director of SPHS Behavioral Health Services, noted that she and the staff had previously discussed the need for a community room at the Washington-based center.

When Chris Wall passed away in May 2016, his family asked that all of the memorial contributions be made to SPHS Care Center.

Supported by the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services, the Centers of Excellence ensure that people with opioid-use disorder receive treatment and continue to receive follow-up care and support within the community. Southwestern Pennsylvania Human Services Inc. established Centers of Excellence under Mon Valley Community Health Services in Monessen and The Care Center in Washington, PA in early 2017.

To date, 869 clients have been referred to the SPHS Centers of Excellence with more than 70 percent engaged in treatment with various providers throughout the region.

More than 75 percent continue in treatment more than 30 days.

Centers of Excellence call centers answer 24 hours a day, seven days a week at 1-888-810-8595. In addition to those dealing with opioid addiction, family and friends can also call.

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