Getting to the heart of the substance abuse crisis means confronting overdose. On Monday, survivors, peers, family members, caregivers, and the bereaved will wear their hearts on their sleeves at the 10th annual International Overdose Day Rally from 5 to 8 p.m. at Veterans’ Park in Lockport.
“This is an invitation to change,” said April Fearby, director of the Independent Living Center of Niagara County, the sponsor of the event. “We’re here when you’re ready, but we’re also not pushing it on anyone,” she said of recovery services.
“It’s just important to raise awareness and remember those that we lost, and support people,” she said. “It also gives the families a place to really put their heart out there for their person and feel like they’re making a difference.”
For families grieving the loss of a loved one, Fearby said coming together to offer resources and understanding to others in need is part of their own healing.
“It is a big motivation for the people that I’ve spoken to to say — it wasn’t for nothing — and really use their story for the positive,” Fearby said.
Doug Bisher, peer support specialist for the Addict2Addict program at Independent Living Center of Niagara County, said the event will include speakers, free Narcan training, information booths from support organizations, a remembrance table for photos and notes, and a flameless candlelight vigil.
Speakers will include Judge William Watson of Niagara County Treatment Court; Town of Lockport Justice Cheryl Antkowiak; Eddie Lambo, recovery advocate and community organizer for Peaceprints of Western New York; and Angela Robertson, who advocated for Stephen’s Law that assures communication between treatment facilities and patients’ families to allow them to intervene during relapses.
Singer Josh Vacanti will perform two songs before the evening vigil, Bisher said.
Fearby said for many people, silence creates additional suffering.
“People are going to share their testimonials of both hope and loss,” Fearby said. “There’s no wrong way to grieve. Coming together as a group can really empower people. You have other lights around you that are helping you through it. Even if your light is dim, you’ll have a lot of dim lights around you.”
“I think it brings our community closer together,” Bisher said. “One of my best friends, we tragically lost him in March. He used to be such a big part of this. Now he’s on our Remembrance Wall.”
Fearby said “You’re not alone” is one of the messages families find most valuable. “I know they want their voice out there,” she said. “That’s important.”
Bisher said there is no one-size-fits-all answer to what makes one person stay in recovery and another to relapse.
“It’s hard to measure what success looks like for an individual,” he said. “Some will never return to addiction. Some do harm reduction and use differently or less. There’s as many ways to recover as people in recovery.”
Bisher said an important part of recovery is doing selfless service for others. Helping at the annual rally is where some people in recovery perform such service for the first time, Bisher said.