Vigil held for opioid-related deaths
The Downtown Mission held a vigil Monday evening, honouring those who have lost their lives through an accidental drug overdose.
“A Night to Remember” took place at the Mission’s courtyard on Victoria Avenue.
Many overdoses are the result of opioids. According to the DTM, statistics from the Windsor Essex County Health Unit reveal that:
- In 2020, there were 63 opioid overdose deaths reported by the Office of the Chief Coroner of Ontario;
- Forty-one per cent of all opioid-related deaths were males aged 25-44;
- Fentanyl was the most common opioid identified in 2020 opioid-related deaths in WEC, occurring in 65% of opioid-related deaths.
As a result of decisive interventions by DTM staff trained to use Naloxone, 88 opioid overdoses were reversed, and lives were saved in 2020.
“This is special time to come together as an extended family to find peace and healing,” says Ron Dunn, Downtown Mission executive director.
“When a Mission guest dies, there is an emptiness we all feel,” he says. “We mourn as we would members of our family because we are their family.”
Brittany Lavin, manager of programs and services at the Downtown Mission, says many of them seemed comfort at the mission.
“Because people are struggling doesn’t mean they’re any less deserving of a funeral of celebrating life, of just basic respect and this just kinda sheds some light that they’re here, they’re humans too at a baseline,” she says.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
MPP Sarah Jama asked to leave Ontario legislature for wearing keffiyeh
MPP Sarah Jama was asked to leave the Legislative Assembly of Ontario by House Speaker Ted Arnott on Thursday for wearing a keffiyeh, a garment which has been banned at Queen’s Park.
Mountain guide dies after falling into a crevasse in Banff National Park
A man who fell into a crevasse while leading a backcountry ski group deep in the Canadian Rockies has died.
2 teens charged in Halifax homicide: police
Two teenagers have been charged with second-degree murder in connection to an alleged homicide near the Halifax Shopping Centre earlier this week.
'Deep ignorance': Calls for Manitoba trustee to resign sparked after comments about Indigenous people and reconciliation
A rural Manitoba school trustee is facing calls to resign over comments he made about Indigenous people and residential schools earlier this week.
12-year-old hippo in Japan raised as a male discovered to be a female
When Gen-chan arrived at a zoo in Japan in 2017, no one questioned whether the then-five-year-old hippopotamus was a boy. Seven years later, zoo staff made a surprising discovery: Gen-chan, now 12, was female.
B.C. tenants evicted for landlord's use after refusing large rent increase to take over neighbouring suite
Ashley Dickey and her mother rented part of the same Coquitlam duplex in three different decades under three different landlords.
Here's why Harvey Weinstein's New York rape conviction was tossed and what happens next
Here's what you need to know about why movie mogul Harvey Weinstein's rape conviction was thrown out and what happens next.
Improve balance and build core strength with this exercise
When it comes to cardiovascular fitness, you may tend to focus on activities that move you forward, such as walking, running and cycling.
Legendary hockey broadcaster Bob Cole dies at 90: CBC
Bob Cole, a welcome voice for Canadian hockey fans for a half-century, has died at the age of 90. Cole died Wednesday night in St. John's, N.L., surrounded by his family, his daughter, Megan Cole, told the CBC.