Losing a loved one to drugs

Photo: BCCSU

Have you lost a family member to substance abuse?

Two forums focused on healing are being offered in Kelowna on Wednesday and Thursday for family members who have lost a loved one to substance use.

The B.C. Centre on Substance Use is hosting Let's Heal: Community conversations for families impacted by substance abuse on both days, from 5:30 to 8 p.m.

“Let’s talk. No Shame. No Stigma,” reads a poster for the events.

This comes days after a Castanet story about how a parent struggled to write an obituary about her deceased son, who died from a fentanyl overdose.

The story on the obituary, which was viewed over 57,000 times, starts off:

Many times I began to try to write this Obituary - and began the same way. KEVIN ROGER DAY, BORN DECEMBER 3, 1984 …

That was as far as I got. Today I believe I should begin at the end of the story. He died May 8, 2018 by himself in his bedroom - the cause was a lethal amount of Fentanyl that he was not aware of that was dropped into the drug he ingested.

Both forums for families will be held at 1628 Dickson Ave. and are free to attend.

A third session for support workers will take place on Thursday, from 11:15 a.m. to 2:15 p.m., and is called Supporting the Bereaved.