Call for Nominations for the Richard Lane/Robert Holden Patient Advocacy Award 2025

Richard Lane was a long-term heroin user who, upon release from prison in 1967, was instrumental in establishing one of the Nation’s first opioid treatment programs. In 1974, he became the Executive Director of Man Alive and later served as Vice President of the American Methadone Treatment Association (now AATOD) and as Vice Chair of the Governor’s Council on Alcohol and Drug Abuse in Maryland. Mr. Lane was a passionate advocate for methadone treatment (the only medication for opioid use disorder available at the time) and, by disclosing his own treatment experiences, provided inspiration to patients and colleagues alike. 

Robert Holden was also a recovering heroin user, who later became the Director of PIDARC, an outpatient opioid treatment program in the District of Columbia. He was a friend of Richard Lane and succeeded Richard Lane’s term of office as the Vice President of the American Association for the Treatment of Opioid Dependence (AATOD). This award was established in 1995 and recognizes extraordinary achievements in medication assisted treatment (MAT) patient advocacy. 

The following criteria should be applied in making your selection: 

• Only one (1) nominee can be submitted by NAMA Recovery to the Conference Awards Committee. There may be several nominees, however only one (1) “consensus” nominee may receive this honor. 

• The nominee must have been involved in Medication Assisted Treatment (MAT) advocacy for five (5) years. 

• The nominee must have made meaningful and consistent contributions, which have had a significant impact on opioid treatment within a state or region of the United States. 

• For each nominee, a Nomination Form must be completed and submitted with two (2) Letters of Support. 

NAMA Recovery will be responsible for collecting all the submissions for nomination and selecting a committee of advocates that will decide on the final candidate. The Candidate’s Name, Nomination Form and at least two (2) Letters of Support describing the nominee’s achievements will be submitted to the AATOD Conference Awards Committee for final approval. 

The deadline for submissions is Friday February 28, 2025, at 5:00pm Eastern Standard Time. 

The Nomination Form should be completed online. https://forms.gle/Lxjzk9DRnvgkksy17

Two (2) or more Letters of Support should be sent via email to [email protected]   

Previous Winners of the Award: 

Richard Lane, 1995, Arizona 
Joycelyn Woods, 2001, St. Louis 
Anthony Scro, 2007, San Diego 
Walter Ginter, 2009, New York 
Lisa Mojer Torres, 2010, Chicago 
Roxanne Baker, 2012, Las Vegas 
Ira Marion, 2013, Philadelphia 
Claude Hopkins, 2015, Atlanta 
Brenda Davis, 2016, Baltimore 
Paul Bowman, 2017 New York 
Zachary Talbott, 2019 Orlando 
Jana Burson, 2021 Las Vegas 
Sara Gefvert, 2023 Baltimore
Anita R Kennedy, 2024 Las Vegas 

This Award will be bestowed upon the recipient during the Awards Ceremony Dinner during the National AATOD Conference which will convene in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in October.