Heroin Support Blog

Our goal here is to provide our readers with the latest information about the signs substance abuse disorder, support groups, treatment options, life in recovery, prevention & advocacy in our communities, and how to deal with the grief of a lost loved one. If you have ideas or suggestions that you wish to share with us here please use our "Contact Us" page at the very bottom of this page to email us. You can click on our Memorial Map to add your loved ones tribute to the map and then a few days later we will add them to our memorial blog.

community involvement

Support Heroin Support on #GivingTuesday

Help Us Help Families In Need.
Our nonprofit Heroin Support tries to purchase and donate 2-3 urns per month at an average cost of $125 per urn.  We rely on donations and proceeds off the sales of our wristbands.

 
 

Support Heroin Support & Heroin Memorial on #GivingTuesday

On #GivingTuesday, Facebook and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation will be matching up to $2 million of funds raised on Facebook for US nonprofits. Facebook is also waiving its fees for donations made to nonprofits on Facebook this #GivingTuesday.

Donations to Heroin Support made through Facebook’s charitable giving tools on November 28th will be matched up to $50,000 or $1,000 per individual fundraiser (see below!) or donate button, until the $2 million in matching funds run out. The match will begin at 7:00 a.m. CST.

There are many ways to take advantage of the matching funds and 'lend your face' to Heroin Support on Facebook. Here are some easy ways to get started:

Create a fundraiser!

To take advantage of the match on #GivingTuesday, complete a few easy steps:

  1. Visit Facebook.com/fundraisers, click “Raise Money,” and select Heroin Support from your list of nonprofits for your fundraiser.
  2. Determine the amount of money you'd like to raise forHeroin Support --donations will be matched up to $1,000 on #GivingTuesday. Next determine when you want your fundraiser to end. If you want to participate only on #Giving Tuesday, then select November 29, 2017.
  3. Tell your story. This is when you get to name your fundraiser and explain to family and friends why Heroin Support is important to you.
  4. Pick a cover photo.
Update Your Facebook Profile Picture to Show Support

Click here for our Heroin Memorial frame for your Facebook profile pic

      HeroinMemorail profile

Click here I Hate Heroin frame for your profile pic

      ihateheroin profile

Add a Donate Button

You can also support Heroin Support by adding a donate button to your Facebook post or live video.

  • Write a Post: Tag Heroin Support or add “#donate” to your post. You’ll see a prompt to add a donate button after you post.
  • Go Live: Tap “Live” at the top of your News Feed on mobile, and click “Add Donate Button” from the menu.

Click & Donate

Click here to goto Heroin Support’s Facebook page to donate directly

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Brackets For Good Fundraiser

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The tournament tips off Friday, February 24th at 8 pm



We’re in #BFG17! Find out how you can play and help Heroin Support win $10k! 

How to Donate (click here)

View Heroin Support Current Matchup (click here)

View the Entire Bracket (click here)

Q. What is Brackets For Good (aka “BFG”)?
A. Brackets For good is the sport for nonprofits. Inspired by college basketball brackets, Brackets For Good is a charitable, online fundraising tournament where up to 64 hand-selected, local nonprofits with a 501(c)3 status in good standing compete for donations while earning increased awareness along the way. All participating nonprofits have a chance at winning $10,000 unrestricted grant courtesy of the tournament’s presenting sponsor.

Q. How does it work?
A. Picture the annual college basketball tournament in March. Now, replace the teams with nonprofits. Organizations go head-to-head in a single elimination, bracket-style fundraising tournament at bfg.org. During each week-long round donors visit bfg.org, select the nonprofits they wish to support, and donate money to help them advance to the next round ($1 = 1 Point). At the end of each round the nonprofit with more points advances and the points reset.

Q. Who is Brackets For Good for?
A. Brackets For Good is designed to engage local philanthropists no matter if they are the CEO at a multi-billion dollar company, a director at a small nonprofit, a full-time mom, a local sports fanatic, or a young professional with new found disposable income. Brackets For Good is a platform for activating these like-minded individuals who want to support and continue the good-natured initiatives happening in their community.

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Alexandria, Ky - "Angel Program" - Volunteers Helping Those Who Are Struggling With Addiction

Featured

Alexandria ACTS Flyer

What is the Alexandria, Kentucky Angel Program?

Beginning October 1, 2016, any person who enters the Alexandria Police Department and requests help with their addiction to opiates will be immediately screened into our Angel Program for placement in a local treatment facility. As a police-led and volunteer supported initiative, officers will connect people with substance use disorders to treatment options in the community, while volunteer “Angels” support participants during the intake process.

Moreover, officers will dispose of any drugs or drug equipment in the participant’s possession and not charge them with a crime. Ultimately, our goal is to connect participants to local, state, or out-of-state treatment facilities which provide an appropriate continuum of care based on the participant’s needs.


The Angel Program Origins
Massachusetts began the Gloucester ANGEL Initiative in June 2015. One year since inception, Gloucester has referred more than 450 people into treatment and shown a 33% reduction in property crime rates.

The success of the program and widespread need for new solutions to the heroin epidemic led to the development of Police Assisted Addiction Recovery Initiative (PAARI), a non-profit organization that provides support for police agencies launching similar programs and networking with nationwide treatment centers.

Reasons for Change
The City of Alexandria and Northern Kentucky has been strongly impacted by the heroin and opioid epidemic. According to the Kentucky Office of Drug Control Policy 2015 Overdose Fatality Report, Campbell, Boone and Kenton Counties have had a high rate of overdose deaths due to illicit and/or prescription drugs that were inflicted intentionally or unintentionally including heroin and Fentanyl.

Kentucky Resident Drug Overdose Deaths 2014-2015 (Source: http://odcp.ky.gov/)
(These deaths represent overdoses by illicit and/or prescription drugs that were inflicted intentionally or unintentionally)
Campbell County - 176 deaths (45 from heroin)
Boone County - 180 deaths (23 from heroin)
Kenton County - 307 deaths (72 from heroin)

KyOverdoseDeaths2014 2015

Overall, drug-related crime, public health issues, and overdoses in our community have pushed our police to develop innovative programs to address this crisis. We wanted to implement a program with proven success at reducing drug-related crime and removing barriers to treatment.

Alexandria's Dedication to Drug Enforcement
The Alexandria Police Department is strongly dedicated to bringing justice to drug dealers and suppliers in our city. While we will continue to arrest and prosecute drug traffickers to the highest extent, this program aims to reduce their clientele by minimizing the stigma of addiction and removing barriers to recovery. The Alexandria Police Department will be a safe place for those who are ready to for help with their addiction.

Angel Program Walk-In-Hours at the Alexandria Police Station
Monday - Friday
10:00 am - 6:00 pm

For more information on our Addiction Community Training & Support (ACTS) and Angel Program, please contact:
Kelly Pompilio, MSW
Police Social Worker
City of Alexandria
8236 West Main Street
Alexandria, KY 41001
Ph. 859-448-2807
fax. 859-635-4123
email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

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Heaven Sent: Free Memorial Blanket for Children Who Lost a Loved One.

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Our Heaven Sent program aims to comfort children who are grieving the loss of a loved one with a heartening gift sent from Heaven. We send each child a blanket personalized with photos of their loved one and any special message that was important between the two of them. While we do this throughout the whole year, and will continue to do so…

Right Now, we are announcing a spectacular Christmas Giveaway... We are targeting children who have lost a loved one due to addiction. We will be sending out 200 blankets in time for Christmas to the first 200 children that someone nominates to receive a Heaven Sent blanket by filling out the form on our website. The link is attached below. Please feel free to share with someone you know that has a child that could use a gift from heaven. We will let those who are the first 200 recipients know they will receive a blanket with an email confirmation. If we exceed that number, we will keep a wait-list to fulfill as we can throughout the year.

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Visit their website to inquire about receiving a free memorial blanket for your child.  You can also visit their Facebook page.

Anyone wishes to donate to this cause to keep the free blankets coming can do so by clicking here.

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