MASHPEE – What do a former US congressman, a former Barnstable County commissioner and the CEO of the largest addiction treatment center on Cape Cod have in common?
They are all part of the team put together by Medical Marijuana of Massachusetts, Inc., a newly formed nonprofit that wants to open a medical marijuana dispensary in Mashpee.
But as to why they are involved, each has a different reason.
Former US Representative William D. Delahunt, now a lobbyist whose firm is Delahunt Group International LLC, is head of the board of the company. He said he wants marijuana to take the place of powerful opiates as a safer way to manage pain than highly addictive opiates.
Former Barnstable County Commissioner Mary Leclair, who is serving as a community liaison for the company, said she got involved with the medical marijuana issue because she wants to ensure that funds from the nonprofit organizations are funneled to local nonprofits in need.
And Raymond V. Tamasi, President and CEO of Gosnold on Cape Cod, whose role for the medical marijuana group is in community education, said he wants to ensure the waiting rooms of medical marijuana facilities to have brochures educating patients on the dangers of drug addiction.