A community emerges through the pain of the toxic opioid crisis in Thunder Bay, Ont.
Service providers, families share stories, raise awareness and build resources
Tucker Gaudette was a 16-year-old hockey player from Thunder Bay, Ont. described by his mother as kind and humble with a zest for life. He was in the cadets and planned to join the army after graduating high school.
He is also one of the more than 2,500 people in Ontario who died from an opioid overdose in 2022.
Tucker's mom, Wendy Gaudette, joined dozens of families to recognize International Overdose Awareness Day Thursday at Paterson Park.
"It's nice to know that I'm not alone but it breaks my heart to see how many people have lost their children to this drug," Gaudette said.
In the city with the highest opioid-related mortality rate in Ontario – more than four times the provincial average – it can be hard to find someone who hasn't been affected by the crisis. The alarming numbers even prompted a visit from new federal minister of mental health and addictions, Ya'ara Saks, this week, who said coming to Thunder Bay was a top priority.
Tucker Gaudette died 10 months ago of fentanyl poisoning, and his mom Wendy said sharing his story is "the only thing I have left."
"Hopefully other parents don't go through what I'm going through, as all the other mothers who are here who have lost their children," she said. "I want his memory to stay alive and I hope that his story will save people."
'Seeing the people who are often unseen'
Thursday's event was organized by the Thunder Bay District Health Unit with support from NorWest Community Health Centres, the DEK Foundation and several other organizations that deal daily with clients affected by addiction.
Workers and volunteers handed out naloxone kits, which can be used to reverse the effects of an opioid overdose, along with information about treatment and harm reduction resources.
"Everybody who's in this park right now has been affected in one way or another," said Hailey Surette, director of primary care for NorWest Community Health Centres.
"I have personal losses. I have had losses throughout my career. I support staff who are working on the front line of this," she said of what International Overdose Awareness Day means to her.
"It means seeing the people who are often unseen, it means hearing the voices that are unheard, and it means not just supporting people in their day to day but letting them know that we see them and we love them and we care about them."
Bringing people and service providers together at a public event is an important way to raise awareness, she said, but also to address the stigma attached to drug use.
Increasingly toxic drug supply in Thunder Bay
Street drugs have become increasingly toxic, and many people who use drugs think they're purchasing one thing and are instead getting a cocktail of deadly substances, said Rick Thompson, an outreach worker with the Thunder Bay District Health Unit.
In Tucker Gaudette's case, his mother said he ended up with pure fentanyl, which is not what he thought he was buying.
"We do see that people are getting addicted much faster and then sort of the level of destruction that goes along with that as well," said Thompson.
People can get their drugs tested at NorWest's safe consumption site, Path 525. They can also get a free naloxone kit at Path 525, at pharmacies and the health unit office.
Naloxone does not cause harm regardless of whether or not the recipient is experiencing an overdose, and under Ontario's Good Samaritan Act, people will not face charges for reporting an overdose to first responders.
"I would love it if any member of [the] Thunder Bay community was walking down the street and saw an overdose, they could recognize it and know how to respond appropriately – and I think that way, we can save lives," Thompson said.
'It can happen to you'
Fay Pettypiece lost her daughter, Jessica Jonasson, to an opioid overdose last August. She overdosed after being sober for nearly three years, and left behind two sons, ages five and seven, whom she loved deeply.
Now, Pettypiece is advocating for change, "so my daughter's death isn't in vain."
Her family has been affected by addiction for the last 17 years. Her other daughter also struggles with addiction, and Pettypiece said she hopes she is safe and that people are kind to her.
"I just want people to realize, to step back and sit back and think, 'Now, if that was my child, what would I do?'" she said.
"It can happen to you, it happens to people later on in life, it happens from trauma, you don't know what tomorrow is going to bring, so just remember that and just be kind."
Kindness is actually one way people can help prevent an opioid overdose, said Thompson.
"I just recently heard from one of the partners I work with that the best harm protection tool we have is compassion," he said. "I agree with that, that we just need to take the compassionate approach and treat every human being as valuable and do whatever we can to help each other."
A candlelight vigil will be held at Paterson Park from 7 p.m. until dusk Thursday in honour of those who lost their lives to the opioid crisis.
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