Podcast Host Brings Impacted Community Together
By Luke Schmaltz, VOICES Newsletter Editor
“This project arose from a recognized need,” explains Mike Tourville, founder of the Healing Voices Project. Since October 2021, his podcast has touched the lives of thousands through interviews with people in recovery, people grieving the death of a loved one to substance use, outreach professionals, and a wide array of other individuals somehow affected by the opioid crisis.
Tourville is also the author of A Promise to Astrid, a story about unexpected generosity in a time of tragedy. In 2019, the book was made into a movie starring Dean Cain by filmmaker and producer Jason Campbell.
Escalating Circumstances
Over the past few decades, Tourville has repeatedly seen the effects a substance-use-related death can have on individuals, families, and communities. “About 28 years ago,” he begins, “My best friend [killed himself] under the influence of cocaine and alcohol. That was devastating, and it never goes away. Then, my aunt died after years of alcohol and drug abuse. I have several friends whose kids have died. I’ve hardly met anyone who hasn’t been affected by this, yet it doesn’t get talked about very much.”
“In April of 2016, the son of one of my very good friends died. He was 19 and he overdosed on heroin and fentanyl. I watched that tragedy tear his family apart. That friend’s name is Kirk Jonah, and he now runs the Jack Jonah Foundation. After Jack died, Kirk started speaking at schools to warn parents and students about the dangers of drug addiction, especially at the teenage level.”
Tourville was so moved by the Jonah family’s tragedy, that he decided to go out on a limb and reach out to his filmmaker friend. “I said, ‘Jason, why don’t you do a film about the dangers of drug addiction and how families deal with the loss of a life?’ I mentioned Kirk and his son and how Kirk speaks at schools to warn parents and students about the dangers of drug addiction. He said, ‘Mike, that’s a great idea, let’s get on it right now.’ That was in May of 2019. In June, we started writing the script, filming started in August, and the film was done in November.”
It Takes a Village
“We got Kirk's family involved. I said, ‘Kirk, you can get the message out, but you’re going to have to relive this and bring back all of the pain.’ He said, ‘My family and I are ready to do this.’ It became so much more than just doing a movie. In our community in western Massachusetts, people volunteered to be a part of it, whether they were actors or shooting locations. They were coming forward and saying things like, ‘My brother died, my friend died, my son died.’ I was overwhelmed and devastated. I realized these stories needed to be told.”
“A lot of people have a story about the grief of losing someone, a story of addiction, of recovery, or about how families can be healed after a tragic death. So, I wrote Voices from the Fallen. It is a book of eight different stories about addiction, relapse, and recovery. I dove into it more than I thought I would …but in doing so I got to know some of these people rather well.”
After completing the book, Tourville had many others approach him with their stories of substance-use-related circumstances such as death of a loved one, ongoing struggle, or recovery. “I knew how much writing these stories took out of me, how emotionally draining it was to write them, and I thought there must be a better way to get the message out and share what other people have to say. So I thought I would do a podcast. I didn’t know a thing about it, but some things are meant to be.”
“I called a friend who was involved in the movie, Les Tingley, who works for the town of Agawam. I told him I didn’t know where to begin, what software to use, what gear I needed, and he said, ‘Don’t worry about any of that. I’ll do it for you. I’ll take care of the recording, videotaping, editing, all of it. I run the media for the town of Agawam. We need this kind of content.’”
Unexpected Benefits
“This has become a means of therapy, especially for the people who come on the podcast to talk. I’ve had other people say, ‘It was great listening, I learned a lot. It is good to know I am not alone.’ I’m not an expert on addiction, I am not an expert on grief. I know very little. What I’ve learned is that you don’t have to be an expert, you just have to be a human being. You just have to know and care about people and to know this is a problem that needs to be talked about. What really matters is that the guests who come on the podcast have something to talk about and something to share.”
“What I have also learned, even within families, is how differently people cope with tragedy. One of the difficulties is when you have two parents, whose child passed away, and they both deal with it differently. That can potentially cause a lot of strife in their marriage. One can have expectations of how the other is supposed to behave which may not align with them.”
After 70 or so episodes and as a member of the Hampden County Addiction Task Force, Tourville has built a network of recovery professionals, people in recovery, direct service providers, bereaved people, and concerned citizens. “By getting involved, I have found that there are some wonderful people in this field. How passionate, committed, and willing they are to go out of their way to help anybody is commendable. Many people I talk to were once in a different line of work, they lost someone they care about, and found themselves devoted to finding ways to stop substance use or at least preventing matters from getting worse.”
Close to Home
“In the early 1970s,” Tourville continues, “My mom’s father killed someone in a drunk driving accident and years later, her sister died of excessive drug abuse. So my mom came on the podcast to talk about these things. She was so nervous and wasn’t sure if she could go through with it. I said, ‘Hey mom, it’s just me.’ So she showed up, started talking and just went on and on and on. When it was time to wrap, she said, ‘What do you mean? We’re done already?’ She did a great job.”
Thinking about all of the losses in my family, among my friends, my friends' sons – it’s too much. I’m in a golf league, and we have half a dozen guys who have lost sons. People say, ‘Why are you doing this?’ Honestly, I’ve had enough, and I can’t just sit by, shrug my shoulders, and say, ‘Oh, that’s just too bad.’ I am compelled to do something about it.”