IOAD Event Organizers Share Tips for Success
By Luke Schmaltz, VOICES Newsletter Editor
International Overdose Awareness Day (IOAD) is August 31. This year’s theme is Recognizing Those People Who Go Unseen. Substance use-related deaths affect loved ones, healthcare workers, first responders, and many others who may grieve and suffer in silence. IOAD 2023 is an opportunity to let them know they are not alone.
If you want to spread awareness about the extensive impact of the opioid crisis, you can make a difference by organizing your own IOAD event. This can be a profound way of processing the grief of having lost someone to substance use disorder (SUD), for coping with loved ones who are struggling with SUD, or for grieving alongside those who have lost someone to the opioid crisis.
For first-time organizers, there is an abundance of tried-and-true advice for putting together a successful IOAD event.
Recently, VOICES spoke with several experienced organizers to learn how they plan, promote, and garner support for their events.
Community Involvement
Robyn Houston-Bean is the founder and facilitator of The Sun Will Rise Foundation, created in honor of her son, Nick, who died of an accidental overdose in 2015. She explains how aligning your event with other local happenings can get people involved who otherwise would not know about IOAD.
“I started doing the event in Braintree seven years ago,” she begins, “And we always tie it to the BeanStock Music Festival, which is the fundraiser for my foundation. The first part was the music, and the second part was the vigil. It was great because it would draw crowds of different people at the same time, and it worked out really well. You can do it along with something that draws the greater community out and not just people who are affected. Also, it doesn’t have to be a traditional vigil. I did a butterfly release in front of the town hall.”
Ask for Help
“It can be a little overwhelming to try and plan something alone,” Houston-Bean says. “I would reach out to other community members who have been affected by loss, because they would be motivated to make something really nice happen. Don’t be afraid to reach out to the town. Many towns would like to make something happen, but they don’t have that point person who is willing to put in the effort. It takes money to do some of this stuff, such as the cost of the candles, or music, or whatever. Towns are willing to help fund you if you reach out.”
“Look to your community for people who have some skin in the game. Recovery centers, treatment facilities, and hospitals may want to do something too. Once you put the ask out there, you’d be surprised how many people want to help.”
Getting the Word Out
“I’ll usually make a Facebook event and share that because we have a pretty wide reach,” Houston-Bean continues. “I have the local news do an article before the event, and then I make sure they are there at the event so they can let people know what happened. That’s as simple as just calling your local paper or looking on their website for the person who does the local reporting and reaching out. They want stories to write about and you can give them a compelling reason why you are doing this.
Power in Numbers
Debbie Schmill is the founder of the Becca Schmill Foundation, created in memory of her daughter who died from fentanyl poisoning in 2020. She ran her first event in 2022 and offers insight into the overall experience. “As someone who just started last year, I can say that it wasn’t outrageously hard to do. We gathered in June for the first time and were able to pull it off for August 31. What was key for us was who we brought to the table to do this; the collaboration we put together. This included my foundation, the Needham Health Department, Needham Youth and Family Services, Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital, The Needham Police Department, and the Clergy Association.”
“We wanted to bring in a lot of representation from different organizations that have an interest in this topic. We brought a group together that could offer different viewpoints while providing the different pieces we needed to get it done.”
This approach made it easier for Schmill to procure a location for the event due to the resources available to the various parties involved. “We were working with town departments, so we were able to get a town site,” she says. “Everyone had their areas of expertise and their connections in different places.”
Agenda Ideas
“We did a vigil,” Schmill continues. “We had flags representing each person in Massachusetts who passed away from overdose in 2021. The heroes of the day were the police department. We had four volunteers, and they were able to help organize us so well.”
“We created a template for the night – we did it at about 6:30 PM and our clergy person was the MC for the event. I spoke as a person who had a direct loss, we had someone speak who runs the Greater Boston Addiction Centers, and someone from Learn to Cope. The point was to remember the people who passed and honor them, and at the same time gather people together and share resources with them to help the people who are still with us.”
Finding Locations
Kathy Leonard is the Chairwoman for the Marlborough Alliance for Prevention. In 2014, she lost her son Jonathan, age 27, to a heroin overdose. She shares her seven years of expertise on where to hold an event and how to get people involved in the overall production.
“Choosing a location for the event will depend on the community and what is available,” Leonard begins. “I was fortunate enough to be able to place our flag display and hold our vigil at a place that had a perfect sloped area to display the flags, a gazebo, and a lawn where people can sit.”
“An area that is easily seen and has a lot of foot traffic and cars that can see it as they drive by is fantastic. Every year, many people stop by our display, take photos, and ask questions about what the flags represent. It is a great opportunity to educate them about overdose deaths that occur in our city, state, and country.”
“If you are holding a vigil without a flag display, it is a bit more flexible as far as choosing a location, but again, visibility is important because you want to be noticed and have people attend and stop by even if they are just curious and don’t know what the event is about. I have found that this is a great way to engage people and get them interested in talking about the problem we face. I have seen vigils held at the ocean at sunrise, at a local park or common, at a church and at the local town hall, or municipal buildings.”
Staffing the Event
“I have been very fortunate in finding volunteers in local organizations,” Leonard continues. “I get support and volunteers from local recovery organizations, the National Honor Society, and very often from loved ones who have lost someone to an overdose, because the cause is so important to them.”
“I have made many connections with folks in groups like SADOD and Team Sharing and they are always willing to help out. They are the ones who help me set the flags up and take them down and help me on the night of the vigil with whatever I need.”
Make a Safe Place
Julie MacDonald is the program manager at Living in Recovery in Pittsfield. As someone in recovery, she gives impassioned insight into how IOAD events help people deal with grief and stigma. She also offers details into how her events are run with an important reminder that these can be emotional occasions.
“I don’t hide things,” MacDonald says. “I’ve been in this field for years and I don’t have the associated shame. Unfortunately, many do because they are afraid to tell their family or friends what happened because it is looked down upon. It is powerful to have a place where they can be with other people, not hide their heads in shame, and be real about this disease of addiction and what it has taken from them.”
“For people to be able to come together and grieve, to hold space for each other, it can’t be matched. This is an opportunity for people with that common bond which is unbreakable. An event gives them a place to unashamedly feel their grief and honor their loved one.”
“There are so many different ways this day is recognized. We actually hold a memorial service for comforting the families and acknowledging who was lost. We have area clergy come from all different faiths. They share something, say a prayer or give a reading. I lead them [attendees] through a guided imagery to connect with their loved one and share that moment and that love with them. From there, we go to the town square and hold a candlelight vigil. We read the names anyone has given us of people who have passed from overdose, and we place candles in the ground so that other people can see what is happening.”
Check Yourself
“It’s important, as we’re going through an event, that we also have emotional support for ourselves,” MacDonald says. “If you’re organizing this, you need to be able to take a break for yourself because it can get overwhelming. What works well for me, is always spot-checking myself by taking a few moments every day and saying, ‘How are you doing, Julie? Do you need a break? Do you need to talk to someone? I have friends and a network of people I can reach out to and say, “Listen, I’m really having a hard time here. Or I can cry to them. It is OK to have these feelings, but we need to make sure we are taking care of our own hearts.”