Overdose Awareness event set for George Washington Park in Centralia on Thursday

Gather Church and Community Integrated Health Services will host an Overdose Awareness Day event this Thursday in George Washington Park in Centralia.

The annual event aims to remember those who have died from an overdose and reduce the stigma around the topic. The free event will begin at 3 p.m. with a resource fair and Narcan distribution. Members from Gather Church will be on hand to offer training on how to use the potentially life-saving medication.

At 5 p.m., speakers will share their experiences with addiction and overdose, before a remembrance walk begins at 6 p.m.

According to data from the Department of Health, Lewis County had 40 fatal drug overdoses in 2022, twice as many as in 2021.

The event is sponsored by Gather Church, Community Integrated Health Services, Great Rivers BHASO,and CHOICE Regional Health Network.

According to the Drug Enforcement Administration, Aug. 31 is recognized as International Overdose Awareness Day and is the world’s largest annual campaign to “end overdose, remember those we have lost to an overdose.”