LEE COUNTY – The Lee County Opioid Committee is forwarding a recommendation to Lee County Supervisors to continue funding for a Keokuk transitional center.
The opioid committee voted unanimously to send a recommendation for $50,000 per year for the next three years starting in fiscal year 2027-28 to the board at a future meeting.
Kathy Gabel, a board member for the Talbot House for Sober Living on Timea Street in Keokuk, met with the panel along with center director Devon Dade on Wednesday.
The center has been receiving $50,000 per year from the county to help with opioid screenings and transitional services at the center for the past two years and a final payment under that initial grant funding is set to be paid in July.
Gabel had amended her request this year to add $15,000 for a staff accountant or treasurer, but the panel pushed back that those costs probably wouldn’t fit within a memorandum of understanding the county has with regards to how those funds can be spent
Gabel agreed to amend the request back to the original $50,000 which was approved for an expansion of Dade’s responsibilities to full time with a new focus on identifying men who come to the facility struggling with opioid addictions and co-occuring other substance abuse problems including other narcotics and alcohol.
Gabel said opioid addictions can start early for people still struggling and the opioid industry was good at making sure pain management was a high priority.
“Most of the time somebody with an opioid addiction, that addiction starts in the doctor’s office,” Gabel said. “Sometimes opioid is the gateway to all the addictions. There’s no way to go back and trace that specifically, but you’ll find that a lot of it’s connection. The opioids we’re dealing with are 20 years or 15 years in their past. We truly believe that a lot of the addiction stems from the initial pain issue with the doctor that went unresolved.”
Lee County Supervisor Chair Ginger Knisley said the center needs to find a way to connect opioid data to use of the funds.
“I’ve been a nurse for 40 years and I know we had to treat pain by what the patient said it was and the opioid industry was very good at making sure that pain was listed as the fourth or fifth vital sign and we had to make sure patients were without pain.”
“There were pain medications before opioids, but with opioids it could be a matter of weeks before someone is addicted to that.”
She said the Talbot House usually see men with multiple addiction issues and untreated mental health issues. Most often people with no other choices. Some come because they want to and others because there’s no other place to go.
The center’s budget is $140,000 and income comes from rent of the men, the rent of Alcoholics Anonymous and Narcotics Anonymous meetings at the facility, opioid grant funds from the county, and private donations.
In 2025, they served 45 men and families in total and currently are working with six men. Dade is the group’s only employee.
“Your money goes a long way in our program.”
She said costs at the center are up 33% over the past three years, it is still a taxed facility, and they’ve worked for eight years to get a tax exempt status for the building.
The recommendation still requires a majority approval of the board of supervisors. A formalized grant agreement will be presented to the board after it's reviewed by Lee County Attorney Ross Braden and the Talbot House as a result of the recommendation.
In other action, the panel also heard from Lee County Deputy Bryson Hennigar, who filed an application on behalf of all K9 officers in the county, including Lee County Sheriff’s Dept. Keokuk Police Dept., Fort Madison Police Dept., and Iowa State Penitentiary. In total, there are seven active K9 officers in the county and Hennigar's application was for emergency Narcan administration to the animals who can suffer the same health emergencies as humans.
Hennigar said the funds would be used to train handlers and Lee County EMS staff on administering the Narcan or other antidotes to the animals in incidents of health emergencies at about $26,000.
Opioid fund Administrator Chuck Vandenberg said he would forward the application to County Attorney Ross Braden for review and potentially a review by the state auditor’s office.
The panel also heard updates from Community Health Centers in Keokuk who received a $1 million grant from state funds, not Lee County funds, to provide medical-assisted therapy and other support services, including transportation, for those suffering with opioid use to their facility.
The county is currently providing grant funding to the Talbot House, the Lydia House also of Keokuk, Counseling Associates for counseling services at the Meller Family Health Center, and ADDS for services at MFHC. They have also provided funding to the Keokuk Homeless Alliance for infrastructure to complete the facility when the Alliance changed bylaws to provide for screening for opioid use in residents of that facility.
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