29 / 68
2017 Wellness Expo
Lincoln Daily News Wednesday, February 15, 2017 Page 29
The Pillar group working through how to provide
treatment for addiction realized that their goal
would have to be to not only treat the addict,
but also save the life of the addict from a drug
overdose.
A drug called Narcan can reverse the effects
of heroin, and revive an overdose victim, if
administered quickly.
To do this, the antidote drug would need to be
made available to all first responders in Logan
County.
The cost of the Narcan kits was identified as a
barrier. While all agreed that the drug would
save lives and was necessary, the funding to
purchase the drug for first responders was not
available. There was some state funding available
for EMT’s, but there was no funding available to
provide Narcan to police officers, who are often
first on a scene.
The answer to that barrier would have to be
community fundraising.
St. John United Church of Christ got involved
with the Narcan fundraising when the heroin
epidemic hit close to home for the church family.
A couple in the church had a grandson die of a
heroin overdose.
The couple had been particularly close to their
grandson, playing a big role in his upbringing.
When they learned that he had a drug addiction,
they had done all that they could to help him
through the process of getting clean. They had
given love and support, and had seen to it that he
got the treatments he needed, even to the point of
being the ones to drive him to a detox facility.
The grandson did get clean for a time. One of
the keys to staying clean for an addict is that the
addict has to separate him or herself from the “old
friends” who he or she did drugs with. For this
young man, it was an occasion where he went to
see some of his old friends, the drugs came out, he
overdosed, was abandoned by his friends and he
died.
If the police or an ambulance had been called, and
if the drug had been available to administer, this
could have been a life-saved, and a second chance
for someone to recover and live a full life.
While this family was aware that the young man
had an addiction problem, many families learn too
Continued
u
Pastor Kramer, on behalf of the church and Outreach
Ministry presents certificates of appreciation to Reddix
and Langellier.