PUEBLO — Every year, August 31 is International Overdose Awareness Day, a chance for us to remember those we have lost to addiction, while raising awareness about resources that can help.
On Monday, the Southern Colorado Harm Reduction Association in Pueblo hosted an event for International Overdose Awareness Day, where a Native American ceremony was held to honor lives lost.
That evening, News5 spoke with a father who lost his daughter to addiction, only around three years ago. Rory Huskin said Tierney passed away at 24 years old, due to an opiate addiction.
Huskin said he can try to understand what his daughter went through, as he struggled with an addiction for over a dozen years of his life.
Huskin said they thought they were doing everything they could to help his daughter, but he knows from experience it takes a person wanting to help themselves for real change to happen. "They have to want it. So, I still feel with my daughter, if I had done everything that I thought that she needed for her sobriety, that she still probably had a destination with that day," said Huskin.
One of the resources at the event was Sober AF Entertainment, an organization that sets up sober safe zones at concerts, festivals, and sporting events. While there, the Executive Director, Duke Rumely, thought of his good friend Mitch who lost his life to addiction. "Mitch, I celebrated you today. We had a ton of fun. I'm glad you were with me. I know that this wasn't really your plan the way it all played out, and your family and friends miss you and love you," said Rumely.
If you or anyone you know needs someone to talk to, call Colorado Crisis Services at 1-844-493-8255.
