Meet Joe Amico
Joe Amico is an international speaker on LGBTQAi+ addiction issues, Licensed Alcohol and Drug Abuse Counselor, Certified Addictions Specialist (Alcohol, other drugs and sex addiction), and ordained United Church of Christ (UCC) clergyperson. Joe is currently the Vice President of the National Rural Alcohol and Drug Abuse Network. He is past president of SASH (Society for the Advancement of Sexual Health) and NALGAP: The Association of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender Addiction Professionals and Their Allies. Joe is currently the Senior Pastor of Tabernacle Congregational Church (UCC) in Salem, MA.
An experienced counselor and consultant in the addiction field, Joe has served as a chaplain and director of adolescent substance use disorder programs, vice president for clinical affairs of a national mental health and addiction treatment program for LGBTQAi+ clients, clinical program director for a long term residential treatment program for men who would otherwise be homeless, and wrote the curriculum and trained the staff for the first inpatient LGBTQAi+ psych unit in New England. Joe was an editor and contributor to SAMSHA’s Provider’s Introduction to Substance Abuse Treatment for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Individuals and its subsequent curriculum for training counselors on LGBTQAi+ issues. Joe has published numerous journal articles on LGBTQAi+ substance use and sex addiction issues, conducted webinars on LGBTQAi+, and been a speaker at such notable conferences as NAADAC, Cape Cod Symposium, Journey Together Conference, and the UK/European Symposium on Addictive Disorders.
Joe is the recipient of the 2011 NALGAP Leadership Award, the 2013 SASH Merit Award, the 2016 North Shore Pride Fabulous 5 Award, and in 2024 named a Paul Harris Fellow by the Rotary Club of Salem, MA.
Joe is available to conduct workshops and staff trainings on LGBTQAi+ issues, speak at conferences, and consult with both addiction programs and churches who want to make their programs more affirmative for clients.
