Eighth Annual Lockport Overdose Awareness Day

00:00:00 Speaker 1 

Welcome to Independent Perspective, a public affairs presentation of Western New York Independent Living (WNYIL). Our guests today are Doug Bisher and Lindsey Groffenberg, who are both Addict 2 Addict peer support specialists in Niagara County with Independent Living of Niagara County (ILNC). And I'm your host, Ernie Churchwell. Welcome to the program, folks. 

00:00:23 Speaker 2 

Hi Ernie. 

00:00:23 Speaker 2 

Thanks for having us. 

00:00:25 Speaker 1 

It's our pleasure. You've got a really big event coming up at the end of August, so I'll kind of sit back and let the experts tell us all about the Lockport Overdose Awareness Day rally. What all does it have to offer to people? 

00:00:49 Speaker 3 

So, Ernie, our Lockport International Overdose Awareness Day really is going to be our 8th rally. It's at Veterans Memorial Park at 400 E Ave. in Lockport, NY. 

00:01:02 Speaker 3 

There's going to be various testimonies from speakers, a famous candlelight vigil. You can also get Narcan trained and have other important resources given to the community members. Various agencies from around Western New York will be there with tabling, and then there's also a bell ringing ceremony to remember all the fatalities in Niagara County in the past year. 

00:01:30 Speaker 1 

Oh, and by the way, for the uninitiated, that Narcan is something which helps people that have had an Opioid overdose and can bring them back from the edge. Can you tell us how that works? 

00:01:44 Speaker 2 

Yeah, Ernie. So, it's all, it's a medication that's used as a nasal spray. It's either administering it now and you can be found in various places in the community. So, it actually takes the opioid off the receptor, and it helps to give the person a chance to find some recovery and to live another day. And it's not a guarantee as the fentanyl, it's never been stronger. 

00:02:04 Speaker 2 

It has saved countless lives across the world, not just Western New York. 

00:02:09 Speaker 1 

And in case someone hesitates to use it if what they're not suffering from is an opioid. Does using Narcan cause any problems for them? 

00:02:20 Speaker 2 

No, Sir. That's a great question. It's commonly misconstrued as such. It's known as a no harm drug, so it won't have any adverse effect if a person does not have any opioids in their system. 

00:02:32 Speaker 1 

Well, that's kind of a a win-win type of solution, isn't it? There's something exciting that you're starting this year, the remembrance wall. What can you tell us about that? 

00:02:46 Speaker 2 

Yeah. So, we're doing something for the first time every year we have the remembrance table where people could bring photos of their loved ones or someone who they've lost to an addiction and the opioid or any overdose of any sort. But we're doing this thing with tribute cards for our event this year where people can dedicate a remembrance card, they can write the person's name and then a tribute to that person, whether it be a saying in memory or just something that they never got to say to them. 

00:03:09 Speaker 2 

We're going to be building a remembrance wall essentially and building for years like home with that, so they can honor their loved ones that way. 

00:03:16 Speaker 1 

Oh, so the Remembrance card and what people have to say about the dear departed individual will be placed on a wall that will be displayed with at ILNC by perhaps. 

00:03:29 Speaker 2 

It'll be year after year at the at the Overdose Rally for sure, as Lindsay already mentioned, this is the 8th one and we just continue to figure out more ways to honor those that have lost the battle to addiction. So, if you have to be determined on how we're going to throughout the year with that, but definitely on August 31st, which is International Overdose Awareness Day, it will be at the event in life for at Veterans Memorial Park. 

00:03:50 Speaker 1 

Terrific. Quick and in case people didn't happen to have a pencil handy, could you remind people of the when and where? 

00:04:00 Speaker 3 

So, it's August 31st, which is going to be a Saturday this year at 400 E Ave. in Lockport, NY, 14094, and it begins at 5:00 p.m. and goes until 8:00 p.m. 

00:04:12 Speaker 2 

Yeah. And if they can't make it in person or any, I'm sorry to interrupt. If they can't make it in person, they can also follow it streamed online on our Facebook page with our Addict 2 Addict Niagara Facebook page and on our WNYIL or ILNC Facebook. 

00:04:14 Speaker 1 

That's terrific. And so that's the best way to contact you if people want more information. 

00:04:33 Speaker 2 

That or our hotline at 716-398-4333. 

00:04:38 Speaker 1 

Thanks so much for being with us folks. 

00:04:40 Speaker 2 

Thank you, Ernie. 

00:04:41 Speaker 1 

You've been listening to Independent Perspective, a public affairs presentation of WNYIL. Our guest today has been Doug Bisher and Lindsey Groffenberg , both Addict 2 Addict peer support specialists of Niagara County. And I've been your host, Ernie Churchwell.