Project HOPE - The Overdose Awareness Campaign
About Project HOPE
On Wednesday, August 30th there will be an event at 6:30 pm at the Tuscarawas County Courthouse courtyard to recognize International Overdose Awareness Day. The event will launch Project Hope, remember those who have lost their lives to overdoses, and recognize the start of National Recovery month in September. This event will also raise awareness about the toll that drug overdose is taking here in Tuscarawas County.
Beginning August 30, Tuscarawas County residents will see silhouettes positioned throughout the county to shine a light on the issues of addiction and overdoses. These silhouettes also serve as a memorial in remembrance of those in our community lost to addiction.
- Black silhouette: Represents 9 overdose deaths in the county from January 10-June 30, 2023.
- Gray silhouette: Represents the 82 overdoses not resulting in death in Tuscarawas County.
- Yellow silhouette: Represents “There is Always Hope.”
- Yard signs: Promotes the Tuscarawas County Substance Use Hope Line: (330) 663- 6812 and how to access Naloxone (Narcan) kits.
Project Hope is an annual awareness campaign to publicly challenge the stigma associated with substance use disorders and overdosing. This year’s campaign acts as a period of remembrance for the 21 Tuscarawas County residents who died because of an overdose in 2022. Project Hope also allows survivors to remember the 9 county residents who passed away from overdoses and recognize the 82 recorded overdoses (not resulting in death) in our county during the first six months of 2023.
Empower Tusc (formerly the Tuscarawas County Anti-Drug Coalition), the Tuscarawas County Health Department, and the Tuscarawas County Addiction Task Force have joined forces to help our community better understand addiction, reduce the stigma surrounding substance use disorder, connect individuals with treatment services, and ensure the accessibility of overdose reversal medications. It is also meant to encourage those battling with addiction-as well as their families and loved ones-that treatment works and recovery can happen!
We encourage all residents of Tuscarawas County to attend the August 30 event for a time of reflection and an opportunity to remember those we have lost. We will have music, guest speaker Erik Frederickson, two important proclamations from our County Commissioners, and community resources. Come to remember those whom we have lost, support those in recovery, and share messages of support to those still struggling with addiction.
You can learn more by visiting empowertusc.com.
For information about treatment services available in the county, contact the ADAHMS Board at adamhtc.org.
To request a free Naloxone (Narcan) kit, contact the Tuscarawas County Health Department at tchdnow.org.
HOPE Sunday Materials
Here you’ll find all the materials you need for HOPE Sunday in Tuscarawas and Carroll Counties. Or, you can view and download these materials and our HOPE Sunday Project Tool Kit to help implement HOPE Sunday in your community.
The HOPE Sunday Project Tool Kit
The best prevention of youth substance abuse comes through parental conversations. Learn how to properly educate your children about the dangers of substance abuse. After all, if they don’t learn about substance abuse from you, they’ll learn about it from someone else. Take control of the situation and talk to your kids today!
How Do We Engage Our Faith-Based Communities? The HOPE Sunday Project
