Saving Our Young Adults will be hosting its annual Overdose Awareness Day event on Aug. 31 at the Memorial Wall and the Roberta Bondar Pavilion
Newly released data that shows Sault Ste. Marie was worst in the province for opioid toxicity deaths in the first three months of 2024 comes as little surprise to Connie Raynor-Elliot, the founder of the street-level organization SOYA.
Raynor-Elliot said she heard about many toxic drug poisonings that occurred during those months and she is not shocked that Sault Ste. Marie is leading the province's death rate. "The further you get from Queen's Park, the worse the numbers become. This is not a coincidence but a result of a lack of support for communities outside the Greater Toronto Area," said Shoemaker.
Many of the people who receive toxic drug poisoning aren't even trying to consume fentanyl, said Raynor-Elliot. The test strips allow for non-opiate drugs like Benzodiazepine and Xylazine to be evaluated to determine if fentanyl is present. "I would really like to see the city officials come out, all of them," said Raynor-Elliot. "I would like to see Ross Romano — who's never showed up. I'd like to see Terry Sheehan — who's never showed up."
In recent years, the Overdose Awareness Day event in the Sault has consisted of two parts — a sombre remembrance ceremony at the Memorial Wall outside of the Ronald A. Irwin Civic Centre, followed by guest speakers, support and fellowship at the Roberta Bondar Pavilion. The pavilion is filled with representatives and information from the local agencies that are working to combat the opioid crisis in Sault Ste. Marie and free food and refreshments will be served.
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