Briefs 8/28/24

Source: Briefs | Port Townsend Leader (ptleader.com)

​Leader Staff

Event to honor overdose victims, boost awareness
Several area organizations have teamed up to support International Overdose Awareness Day, which brings attention to issues surrounding substance use disorders (SUDs) and overdose deaths, and allows people to grieve. 

Organizations and agencies including OWL360, Jefferson County Public Health, Safe Harbor and Discovery Behavioral Health, Behavioral Health Consortium, Shop Kalma, Believe in Recovery, and Recovery Cafe are part of the free, all-ages community event from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 31, to raise awareness, reduce stigma and shame, and honor and celebrate the lives of loved ones lost to overdose. 

Overdose is the leading cause of death for people ages 18 to 45 in this country, with more than 100,000 deaths in the 12-month period ending in March 2024. “Many of us know one of the 100,000, some of us know more than one, and some of us may know dozens,” said Sonia Frojen of OWL360. “Among this group are our children, siblings, parents, grandparents, cousins, non-blood relatives, and friends.”

OWL360 was awarded a grant from the Olympic Community of Health to address and reduce stigma of those community members with a substance use disorder through community-wide education, youth/young adult engagement, and through policy and systems change. 
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Events will be held on Saturday from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at The Nest at 1119 Lawrence St., with 12 p.m. time for public sharing. A memorial walk to Recovery Café at 939 Kearney St. will follow at 1 p.m., with lunch at 2 p.m.  All ages are welcome.