Montana Council on Problem Gambling Executive Director Donna Johnson hails from the Wolf Point area where her grandfather homesteaded and where she was raised on a ranch.
She earned her undergraduate degree in psychology and medical technology from Concordia College in Moorehead, Minn., before taking a masters in mental health and chemical dependency from Western Illinois University in 1985.
She tragically lost her 42-year-old husband and father of her two children, so moved her family back to Glendive where she worked with Eastern Montana Mental Health Services for five years.
She then joined the Rimrock treatment facility in Billings but, after remarrying, struck out on her own in 1992. She is now a partner in Meadowlark Recovery Services while functioning as the council's executive director. She has received over 90 hours of instruction in gambling addiction.
When she was contacted in the summer of 2002 by MCPG board member Rich Miller about assuming the council reigns, she believed she would make a good fit because, she said, "I already knew a lot of therapists because I was an officer in the Montana Mental Health Counselors Association. So I started calling people."
She said the widely advertised problem gambler help hotline, paid for by gaming business groups and companies, is the chief tool that can lead people with compulsive gambling disorders to help.
Johnson said she appreciates the gaming businesses that are stepping up to fund--then advertise--the hot line and treatment programs. She said more licensed establishments could display the promotional posters that have been printed and distributed and suggested applying small, unobtrusive stickers with the help information directly to the gaming machines.
Johnson said in viewing the national scene, she estimates only about half the states have a problem gambling council or any program to deal with gambling addiction, "and only one-fourth of the states have anything as active as the Montana program; we're cutting-edge."
Indeed, directors of other councils and programs have come from around the country to see first-hand and up-close what the Montana Council has developed and implemented, including Barbara Barr from the Delaware program, who was impressed with what she saw, Johnson said. A group from North Dakota attended a fall, 2004, Miles City training in hopes they can get some ideas to augment a grant they are pursuing, Johnson added.
But Johnson apparently is not content with progress so far. She said she senses other, more diverse sources of funding will be required as the program expands, so is working on identifying other potential funding entities and applying to them for grants.
Success has been elusive but Johnson and MCPG board chairman Mark Kennedy say they remain optimistic and committed to the grant writing process.
Johnson also sees a need for more outreach and education regarding the programs and the valuable services they provide. She said she plans to work with local service providers to start approaching prosecutors and judges who are in a position to direct those who wind up in court because of gambling problems to treatment--and to make it mandatory.
Too many drop out of treatment before recovery is underway, and the force of the law could lend itself to referred clients completing the treatment regimens, she said.
Further, Johnson said she would like to expand the council's outreach and education to gaming licensees and their trade organizations, particularly at the local level.
"I'd be delighted to come and speak to any casino staff or local tavern association," she said. "We all have to work on this. The information needs to get out there."
And where will the MCPG program be five years from now?
Johnson jumped right in: "It will be triple what we have now. We're going to grow dramatically and we'll have more people participating."
In 10 years?
"I don't know; just keep growing," Johnson said.
"Hopefully, we'll raise (the level of awareness and treatment of problem gambling) to where alcohol and drug treatment are today," Johnson said. "We need to work on insurance companies to begin providing coverage" for treating the destructive disorder.
"Many see our programs as a miracle," Johnson stated matter-of-factly. "Professional help for $5 a session? Most therapists charge $95 an hour! It's such a good concept. Many doubt it is possible."
"We're dedicated to helping people in need. I'm committed. I have a passion for this program."
Source: Montana Tavern Times,
Sept., 2004, published monthly by Continental Communications, 125 W. Granite St., Suite 102, Butte, MT 59701. The MCPG can be reached at , 1-406-252-9076 or 1-888-552-9076, e-mail <donna@mtcpgambling.com>.