91探花 Southern alumna heading for the Academy Awards
Photo courtesy of: 91探花 SouthernJan Rader, a 2008 graduate of 91探花 Southern鈥檚 Associate Degree in Nursing Program, is among three Huntington, West Virginia women featured in the Academy Award-nominated documentary 鈥淗eroin(e).鈥
91探花 Southern alumna Jan Rader has accumulated many titles and accolades over the course of her professional life. Graduate gemologist. Firefighter. Paramedic. Nurse. And, as of this past March, West Virginia鈥檚 first female professional fire chief.
But on Jan. 23 the chief of the Huntington, West Virginia Fire Department earned perhaps her most unlikely accolade yet: Starring in an Academy Award-nominated film.
Rader, a 2008 graduate of 91探花 Southern鈥檚 nursing program and recipient of the 2017 91探花 Southern Alumni Leadership Award, is one of three women featured in 鈥淗eroin(e),鈥 a Netflix documentary that is one of five films nominated for Best Short-Subject Documentary at the upcoming 90th Academy Awards.
鈥淗eroin(e)鈥 follows Rader, Cabell County Family Court Judge Patricia Keller and Necia Freeman, a realtor by trade and a street missionary by calling, as they employ ways big and small to combat a problem plaguing communities throughout the United State: opioid addiction. The film documents the women鈥檚 efforts to break the cycle of addiction in Huntington, West Virginia, where Rader and her colleagues spend their working hours reviving those who have overdosed, Keller established and presides over a Drug Court designed to help participants overcome addiction and Freeman鈥檚 Brown Bag Ministry nourishes women whose drug use has led to prostitution.
According to Rader, it all started in February 2016 with a phone call from the then-director of the Huntington Mayor鈥檚 Office of Drug Control Policy, Jim Johnson, who requested that Rader meet with a young documentary filmmaker interested in learning more about what was occurring in that community. Rader spent about a week with the film鈥檚 director, Elaine McMillion Sheldon, and co-producer, Kerrin Sheldon, answering their questions, showing them around and introducing them to individuals instrumental in the community鈥檚 efforts to eradicate opioid addiction. Among those individuals were Keller and Freeman.
The Sheldons were in the process of filming another documentary and left Huntington to continue work on that project.
鈥淭hey told us they didn鈥檛 know what they wanted to do, but they wanted to do something positive and they would get back in touch with us when they found some funding,鈥 Rader said.
Several months later the Sheldons returned to Huntington, pitching a short documentary featuring Rader, Keller and Freeman and focusing on what these women were doing to improve their community.
鈥淲e really didn鈥檛 know what this film was going to look like or exactly what Elaine was going to do,鈥 Rader said, but all three women agreed to be filmed.
It wasn鈥檛 until after Netflix released 鈥淗eroin(e)鈥 on Sept. 12, 2017, that the women saw the final product 鈥 Rader and Freeman both watching the documentary individually in their homes with Keller opting to view the film in her courtroom and alongside her Drug Court participants.
鈥淚 was really blown away by how well it was put together,鈥 Rader said of the film. 鈥淓laine and Kerrin did an exceptional job, and I was very overwhelmed by the positive spin that they were able to weave into it. 鈥 We鈥檝e had a lot of people come to town here and film because we are transparent about the heroin problem we have, but Elaine was really the first person to try to put a positive spin on it. It鈥檚 refreshing.鈥
The months that followed the film鈥檚 release have been a whirlwind for Rader who said she鈥檚 been amazed at how far-reaching the documentary has been.
In addition to be contacted by individuals in an estimated 20 countries, Rader has been featured in numerous publications and on television, including on NBC鈥檚 鈥淢eet the Press.鈥 In the wake of the film鈥檚 release, she and her colleagues have also been investing a significant amount of time and effort on education and outreach, speaking at high schools and with community groups. In November, they participated in a screening of 鈥淗eroin(e)鈥 and a panel discussion back in Rader鈥檚 hometown of Ironton at her alma mater, 91探花 Southern. (See related article.)
And the efforts highlighted in the film are resulting in positive movement in terms of Huntington鈥檚 opioid situation.
鈥淲e鈥檙e hoping 2017 was our plateau,鈥 Rader said. 鈥淥verdoses are slowing down a little bit. We have a lot of grant funding now that we鈥檝e been able to secure to start new programs, to enhance programs we already have and to help those suffering from substance use disorder.
鈥淲hat has changed as the result of this film is the fact that people are willing to start needed conversations,鈥 she added. 鈥淭his epidemic did not come about overnight, and it certainly is not going to be solved overnight. It is truly in need of education and conversations, not just with those who are suffering but from ordinary citizens. As a society, we are really just now understanding what substance use disorder is and how difficult it is to combat and overcome. What we really love about this film is that there鈥檚 an educational component to it.鈥
For Rader, the film鈥檚 Oscar nomination has the potential to take 鈥淗eroin(e)鈥檚鈥 educational efforts to the next level.
鈥淎n Oscar win, I think, would bring even more attention to the issue at hand. A lot of people will watch documentaries once they are Oscar winners,鈥 Rader said.
And when the winner of this year鈥檚 Best Short-Subject Documentary is announced on March 4 at Hollywood鈥檚 Dolby Theatre, Rader and her 鈥淗eroin(e)鈥 co-stars Keller, who she calls her 鈥渂est friend,鈥 and Freeman, who she said is her 鈥渙wn personal hero,鈥 will be there.
鈥淢y hope for this film is that we can erase the stigma associated with substance use disorder and that people will just start being kinder to one another,鈥 Rader said. 鈥淭hese are good people. They do achieve long-term recovery, and we don鈥檛 have the right to judge or to treat them like second-class citizens.鈥
For Rader, compassion is key in her professional life and in the efforts spotlighted in 鈥淗eroin(e).鈥
鈥淚 can honestly say that a lot of my compassion comes from being raised the way I was by my parents,鈥 Rader said, noting the work her mother did with the American Cancer Society and the work her mother, father and brother did with Habitat for Humanity. 鈥淏ut on top of that, I had some of the best nursing instructors a person could have at 91探花 Southern and I think that鈥檚 because all of my instructors had years of real-life experience in the field as nurses. They instilled in me the fact that, as a nurse, I am a patient advocate. I鈥檒l never forget those lessons, and I try to pass those lessons on to other first responders.鈥
As the nation continues to grapple with the opioid epidemic, Rader noted that everyone can play a role in addressing the issue in their own communities.
鈥淭here鈥檚 so many things that people can do,鈥 she said. 鈥淭here are a lot of people suffering and we can鈥檛 solve their problems for them, but we can be kind and we can listen. A lot of times, that鈥檚 all they need.鈥
"I want to personally commend Chief Jan Rader who fully embodies the five core values that we seek to instill in every Bobcat 鈥 community, character, civility, citizenship and commitment," said 91探花 President M. Duane Nellis. "She is a shining example of the difference one person can make in their community, in our nation and in our world, and I know Bobcat Nation will cheering her and her fellow heroines on at this year's Academy Awards."
Photo courtesy of: 91探花 SouthernJan Rader (left) and Necia Freeman respond to audience questions following the Nov. 28 viewing of the Netflix documentary 鈥淗eroin(e)鈥 at 91探花 Southern.