Families share stories of loss at suicide, opioid crisis prevention event
TimesAug 23, 2021
Aug. 22—MERRILLVILLE — Through tears, a Winfield mother recounted the hardest day of her life when she lost her son to an overdose just months ago.
"On
Irizarry looked at the framed photo being held on stage showing her son, Joey.
"I still do," she said. "This is the picture I say goodnight to every day."
Irizarry and her family's story of heartbreak and loss was among the many shared at the second annual Child Suicide & Opioid Crisis Prevention Event on Saturday at the
There were also stories of hope.
She said she began getting addicted to doctor-prescribed opioids and eventually she turned to buying them off the street. She then found herself in
"I completed drug court, which was a two year program and the judge was very shocked," Lewis said. "He said, 'You beat the odds, congratulations. ... I didn't do this alone though. I had to reach out because I thought if I asked for help it meant I am weak. But I had to reach out because I couldn't do it alone. All along I had my family there, but I pushed them away for so many years, but now, its literally overwhelming about how supportive they are."
"In
The family event included mental health experts, physical therapy presentations, health professionals, law enforcement, food, games and music. A candlelight vigil was held to remember those who died from suicide and addiction and a discussion panel featured local officials, advocates and health professionals.
It was a coordinated effort by the
"As we see across the country, people dealing with mental illness is a serious problem," Martinez said. "I remember becoming a police officer in the early 90s and mental issues were never trained and we were never educated on it. Anyone calls on a problem out on the street, and the way we would solve it is to put them in jail and that was a big problem. Nowadays with the increase in mental illness and education programs, officers are able to identify those with mental illness. I hired two qualified mental professionals in our police department that helps those suffering from mental illness, addiction suicidal thoughts and also help our officers."
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