St. Joseph’s Addiction Treatment and Recovery Centers CEO Bob Ross, at center holding the Charlie Devlin Award, is joined by, from left, Deputy Director of Inpatient Services Tammy Landerway, Director of Community Services Robin Gay, Chief Talent Officer Katie Kirkpatrick, Consulting Psychologist (and Ross’ wife) Pat O’Gorman, Deputy Director of Community Services Brandon Titus, Rose Hill Program Director Tina Buckley, Admissions Supervisor Penny Schmidt, Clinical Services Director Zac Randolph and Family Counselor Heidi Czerepak at the recent Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Providers’ annual conference in Niagara Falls. (Photo provided)

SARANAC LAKE — At the 2019 Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Providers annual conference in late September in Niagara Falls, St. Joseph’s Addiction Treatment and Recovery Centers CEO Bob Ross received the Charlie Devlin Award for advocacy in the field of addiction treatment, in recognition of Bob’s 50 years of serving individuals and families in need of addiction treatment.

ASAP is committed to working together to support organizations, groups and individuals that prevent and alleviate the profound personal, social and economic consequences of alcoholism and substance abuse in New York state.

Charlie Devlin was an early pioneer in the recovery movement who amassed more than 45 years of experience in substance abuse treatment.

Since 2007 Ross has been the CEO and president of St. Joseph’s, based in Saranac Lake. St. Joseph’s provides a 67-bed inpatient program, a 25-bed intensive residential veterans addiction and PTSD program, 28-bed adolescent residential treatment facility (Rose Hill in Massena), eight outpatient clinical drug and alcohol treatment service system facilities, after-care facilities in Poughkeepsie and Schenectady, two county jail treatment programs (Essex and Franklin), and supportive housing facilities in Saranac Lake, Massena, Malone and Ticonderoga.

Ross served for six years as the executive deputy director of the New York State Division of Alcoholism and Alcohol Abuse, and for one year as the acting commissioner, and was a part of the New York City Bureau of Alcoholism Services, serving as deputy director for two years. For 22 years, he owned and operated a health care consulting firm that served government and private clients with health care policy and organizational consulting, both nationally and internationally.

He has also served on a number of significant boards: as former president of the board of the New York State Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Providers Association; as president, and now vice president, of the board of Homeward Bound Adirondacks, a community-based veterans support organization; and as a member of the North Country Community College Human Services Advisory Board. He also previously served on the New York State Governor’s Advisory Council on Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Services for five years, and the North Country Behavioral Health Network for six years. His current board activity includes offering guidance as a member of the Steering Committee of the North Country Innovative Pilot (which consists of a number of hospital, community-based, and governmental organizations working to create a pathway for value-based payments for North Country behavioral health providers), and Northwinds Independent Practice Association, which is designed to improve health outcomes in the community through better information sharing and coordination of services on a local and regional level. He is also a member of the board and the Executive Committee of Pendragon Theatre.

“Bob brings a vision of equity to all those suffering from the impact of substance use,” the citation reads. “So often taking up the causes of the underserved in our society, his 50 years of service is the truest definition of what it means to be a Servant Leader.”