KAMLOOPS — International Overdose Awareness Day is just over a week away (Aug. 31), and a Canadian advocacy group is hoping to paint communities purple.
Moms Stop the Harm is comprised of family members and loved ones of people who have died of illicit overdoses.
One of those members is Kamloops woman Sandra Tully, who lost her son Ryan to an accidental overdose in January 2016.
She is encouraging people to display and wear purple ribbons in remembrance of those who have lost their lives.
“The ribbon certainly reduces the stigma, that means people are willing to acknowledge and remember those people,” Tully said. “When you bravely put something like that on the front of your house you are saying, ‘I accept that this is happening, and I am not ashamed of knowing that person, or having that person in my life, and I loved them as much as I possibly could, and this is how I’m remembering them now.’”
Tully says the group will be handing out ribbons and information to community members next week, however, she says people can simply create their own ribbons.
“I’ve got some pictures of some lovely decorations that people have done,” Tully said. “It’s just amazing how creative people can be when they get behind something like this. It’s wonderful to see.”
