Black balloons displayed in Winnipeg to honour people who died of drug overdoses

People who lost loved ones to drug overdoses came together in Winnipeg on Sunday to remember them and call for better supports to stop preventable deaths.

March 6 marks International Black Balloon Day, which was created to bring awareness to deaths due to overdose and to pay tribute to family and friends who have died from overdoses.

Arlene Last-Kolb displayed a black balloon for her son Jessie, who died from fentanyl poisoning in 2014 at age 24, and offered up her fence as a place to display the names and ages of others in the province who suffered similar fates.

"We're trying to advocate to change it so that we can prevent some of these losses. You know, we miss our children every day," she said.

"It's really, really important that we just remember these people and that they're not forgotten and that their deaths are preventable."

Overdose deaths reached a new high in 2020 when the province recorded 374 deaths, and Manitoba was poised to surpass that grim number for 2021.

Overdose Awareness Manitoba co-founder Rebecca Rummery says that is deeply disheartening.

"It's getting worse, it's not getting better, and there's so many people suffering alone in silence," she said in an interview with Stephanie Cram on CBC Manitoba's Weekend Morning Show on Sunday.

"That's why we do these campaigns so people don't have to suffer alone in silence — they can come forward and they don't have to be ashamed of how their loved one died."

LISTEN | Black Balloon Day marked in Winnipeg:

Rummery helped organize the vigil in remembrance of her partner Rob who passed away from an accidental drug poisoning in 2018.

"Rob was a beautiful soul. He had a warm smile and presence that could light up a room. He helped anyone he could and always brighten the mood with his sense of humour."

Rummery says her partner's substance use disorder didn't define who he was.

"For those who do suffer with a substance use disorder today, I think it's only part of their story, but I think it's important to talk about this part of their story because it's what took them away from us and there are so many others still suffering," she said.

Rummery says Manitoba is at least a decade behind other provinces when it comes to resources to address drug addiction and harm reduction, and the COVID-19 pandemic made a poor system worse.

"We saw the numbers decrease on how many beds and things were open, how many medically assisted detoxes were available, and we already didn't have a lot of services to begin with. So it really put a damper for people who are trying to access help," she said.

Last-Kolb echoes those calls for supports, and wants to see things like a safer drug supply in place in the province, where people who are at high risk of overdose can access prescribed medication as a safer alternative to street drugs.

"We want to remember them today so that we can advocate tomorrow because a lot of these are preventable losses, right? A lot of these were losses from a poisonous drug supply."