A Light to Remember – Overdose Awareness Day gathering will take place on Wednesday, August 31 at Huntington Lake State Park in Huntington, Utah. Everyone in the both Carbon and Emery Counties are invited to attend this event. Dr. Ashley Yaugher spoke over the telephone with Castle Country Radio to share all the details.

“Carbon and Emery Counties actually have been leading the state of Utah for the past several years in opioid and substance overdoses so we thought it was just really important to bring this awareness event called A Light to Remember to not only remember those that we have lost and do a tribute to them and inspire hope for people who are in recovery, and family members, and provide resources and support to everyone,” said Dr. Yaugher. The first 100 people to attend this event will get a free meal from Gettin’ Our Smoke On food truck and a swag bag.

Part of the event will be providing Naloxone education and kits. “We are going to be doing a Naloxone training and we are reducing the overdoses in our area. The numbers are going down which is really hopeful and knowing how to use Naloxone, and knowing what Naloxone is can really help save a life and continue to improve our area, and save people. Which is exactly what all of us are wanting our loved ones, our family members, friends, our community,” stated Dr. Yaugher. The Naloxone training is being provided by the USARA organization and will begin at 6:30 pm.

“We’ll also have that luminary lighting ceremony at 7:30 pm and a moment of silence just as a remembrance at 8:00 pm before the event concludes. We also are really excited to have some background music and lots of our local treatment, recovery, and other people who are involved in this cause will be there to provide education and support for everybody,” said Dr. Yaugher. Luminaries to commemorate loved ones will be made available at the event.

Rides will be available for free from Price and Castle Dale. Rides from Price will be available, leaving at 5:30 pm for a limited number of people (first come, first served) from Four Corners Community Building, 690 East Main Street in Price. Rides will also be available from Castle Dale, leaving at 5:30 pm for a limited number of people (first come, first served) from Stewart’s Market, 590 East Main Street in Castle Dale.

The event is being sponsored by Carbon & Emery Opioid & Substance Use Coalition, USU Extension, HEART Initiative, Castleview Hospital, StepOne Service, Carbon Medical Service, USARA, C.A.R.E Coalition, Four Corners Community Behavioral Health, Southeast Utah Health Department, Utah Rural Opioid Healthcare (UROHC) Consortium, SUU, and Utah State Parks.