Big-hearted Brooklynites kicked cement on adolescent substance abuse by walking the Shore Road Bike Path on Sunday to raise money for long-term teen therapy and family support.
Young people and adults marked last month’s National Alcohol and Drug Addiction Recovery Month by pounding the pavement alongside the Verrazano Straits to foster awareness and funds for Dynamite Youth Center — a borough-based, state licensed, not-for-profit for teens struggling with addiction.
There were as many boosters as there were walkers putting their best foot forward.
Marilyn Price came all the way from Rockland County to support her son. Nacy Price did the same for her grandson, trekking in from Connecticut. Scott Perlmutter, 19, one of the program’s success stories, brought along his dad, Scott, Sr.
For all its sobering sentiment, the jaunt provided plenty of fun all around, even for the pint-sized crowd — adorable 1-year-old Mateo Fernandez bounced beside his mom, Sarah, in an over-sized Dynamite T-shirt.
The walks — there have been 13 of them in as many years — have helped clients cope with tough times, said event planner Dawne Marro.
“We have kids whose struggles to be drug-free are paying off,” she explained.
Marro said that families once torn apart are now functioning, learning, communicating and giving back.
“The rewards are immeasurable,” she said.
Dynamite’s day-service facility and community residence is located on Coney Island Avenue, between Avenues N and O. It also has a residential facility in Fallsburg, New York.
