Vending machine brings life-saving help to the streets

ABILENE, Texas (KTAB/KRBC) – One Texas town has a new vending machine that is saving lives. With the help of a grant, the Abilene Recovery Council is now able to distribute free Narcan to the community using a vending machine to make it accessible to all who need it 24/7.

Cindy Frazier, program director for the Abilene Recovery Council, shares that this has been a long time in the making, hearing firsthand from first responders how this is needed in our community.

“We’ve seen — with the police department — that they have seized fentanyl, they have seized opioids from different drug seizures, so it’s here. It’s in every community. There really isn’t a community that isn’t at risk for fentanyl overdoses,” explained Frazier.

Frazier details how even the smallest amount of fentanyl is life-threatening, but people can overdose in other ways without realizing it as well.

“Whether it’s someone who buys a counterfeit pill from someone, or if a loved one accidentally takes a second dose of an opioid they got from a doctor, even you can still overdose from a prescription medication,” said Frazier.

After researching the perfect location, the Abilene Recovery Council placed their Narcan vending machine in front of a used bookstore called Book Therapy on 1017 Butternut Street. The owner Don Powell and his family quickly agreed, explaining it’s simply the right thing to do. As the Narcan is free, the family saw no risk of vandalism to the machine or their business. Powell says the reaction so far has been positive.

“It is something that is important, you know, it’s part of Christian values. We love each other, and we love everyone and take care of everyone. We had large numbers of people from all different walks of life come into our used bookstore, and not a single person has had a bad thing to say about it. Everybody’s asked about it. And once I explained, everyone thought it was a wonderful idea,” added Powell.

Organizers chose a space where it will reach the most people, and they say every time someone is saved by Narcan, it is an opportunity for that person to enter treatment and recovery.

“It’s within walking distance of a lot of our unhoused neighbors and a lot of people who are living in this area. It’s a very easy access to them and so we wanted to make it as accessible as possible. If this gives them the opportunity then everything is worth it, and we saved a family and a person’s life. We want everyone to be a big part and a positive impact on our community, so why not save everyone’s life,” shared Frazier.

The vending machine also features a QR code that links to a webpage providing instructions on how to use Narcan.

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