All that Laurie Bruder has left of her son David Weinberger are memories and pictures.
"My son, who was one of the most amazing people in this world, got caught up in drugs and wasn't so amazing when he was using drugs," Bruder said.
David struggled with drug addiction for years. He spent time in and out of rehab trying to get sober. After a span of sobriety, he started using drugs again, Bruder said. In August 2021, he was back in rehab. But just a few months later, David was gone.
"I think he just decided he couldn't take it anymore, and based on the autopsy report, I believe he ended up putting as many drugs in his system as he could and he took a gun and shot himself in the head. It was horrific," Bruder said.
In hopes of helping others, Bruder and her longtime partner made a substantial donation to Stella Maris for a new initiative called David's Place.
"This will be the first; there is nothing else like this," said Daniel Lettenberger-Klein, CEO of Stella Maris.
The specialized facility is designed for clients seeking medication-assisted treatment with drugs like Suboxone. David's Place will provide housing for men who are deemed medically appropriate to take part in the program.
"What we're doing with David's Place is making a new model for care, which is allowing people that are in various forms of medically assisted recovery access to housing which has historically not been available," Lettenberger-Klein said.
Dr. Ryan Marino is an emergency doctor, toxicologist, and addiction specialist at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine. He said when medications are used in recovery, there is a higher success rate. But there are challenges.
"There is definitely a stigma around the use of these medications," Marino said.
Marino believes there are a couple of reasons for the stigma.
"First, being that a lot of people see this as quote unquote replacing one addiction with another, which is not true. The other being that I think a lot of people don't see substance abuse and addiction as a medical problem, even though there is very good evidence that it is a medical problem and can be treated medically," Marino said.
According to Stella Maris, their medication-assisted recovery program differs from other medication-assisted treatment programs in a couple of ways: it provides round-the-clock nursing care, and medications are administered in injectable form, reducing the risk of medication abuse.
"So instead of having something every day, which is what MAT has historically been, we prioritize month-long injectables so that they can taper down to abstinence if they choose, but still have something that helps their brain heal from the daily use of opioid use disorder," said Lettenberger-Klein.
The former St. Malachi Rectory will be the location for David's Place. For Bruder, it will be a legacy to her son.
"David helped a million people, even when he was at the throes of his highest addiction, he would get people to meetings, he would help people. He was a kind soul who was lost. I really think doing this honors the best of David, which is helping people," Bruder said.
Construction on the $1.5 million project is expected to start in 2026.
