LAKE COUNTY, Calif. — Aug. 31 is International Overdose Awareness Day, the world’s largest annual campaign to end overdose, the cause of more deaths in the US than breast cancer, guns and car accidents combined.
Lake County's death rate due to drug use is more than four times higher than the state of California’s.
To honor Lake County lives lost to overdose, and to support overdose prevention activism, Hope Rising and SafeRx are bringing an International Overdose Awareness Day tribute event on Tuesday, Aug. 31, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., with speakers at 12:30 p.m. in Lakeport’s Library Park.
Lake County Behavioral Health, Tribal Health and Public Health, along with Tobacco Free North Coast, Redwood Community Services and other local agencies, will be providing information and access to their resources.
To highlight the grievous losses, community members who have lost loved ones due to overdose are invited to pay tribute to them by creating a poster board headstone at the event, to be placed alongside others who have suffered similar losses.
SafeRx will also be providing training in Narcan, a life saving overdose reversal drug.
In addition to remembrance of those whose lives ended prematurely, the purpose of this event is to overcome the stigma often associated with overdose, and to stimulate conversations around the challenges of addiction with key agencies and other community members.
Event partners will provide education on the science of addiction, Lake County’s overdose statistics and guidance on how to access local support resources.
Hope Rising Lake County is a nonprofit that mobilizes partnerships and activities that support community health and wellness.
SafeRx is an initiative of Hope Rising that aims to reduce overdose deaths by providing education and resources in Lake County.
Local International Overdose Awareness Day tribute event planned for Aug. 31
- Lake County News reports
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