Fight Against Addiction to rally in Canonsburg
When Mike Markley started his effort to battle the burgeoning heroin epidemic 18 months ago, he started an organization that focused on the issue in and around the city of Washington.
What was once known as the Washington Fight Against Heroin is now the Western Pennsylvania Fight Against Addiction, a new name to reflect the battle is on not just in Washington but throughout the region and not just against heroin but all addictive substances, including alcohol.
On Saturday, the group will be at the Canonsburg Armory Youth Center for the Spring into Recovery event that is sponsored by the Armory Youth Center, Harbor House Cafe and Washington’s Harmony Life Center.
“This is our 19th event,” said Markley, who is vice president of the Harmony Life Center board. “We are having this one in Canonsburg as we join forces with other communities.”
Jeff Sipos, who is working with Markley and is on the Harmony Center board, said the problem with addiction is not limited to this county but is a global issue.
“Addiction is not just to one item,” said Sipos, who worked with recovering addicts for 25 years while living in Southern California. “Anything that alters the mind, whether pot or alcohol, can send the addict back.”
“There needs to be education so people understand what goes on in the addict’s mind,” he added. “The better educated we are, the better we can help the community.”
Sarah Robinson will share her story Saturday. Robinson, who is on the board of directors of Communities Moving Forward, said she lost her husband to his addiction two days before Christmas.
Communities Moving Forward is a faith-based program similar to Alcoholic Anonymous, open to both the addicts and those whom she calls the “affected,” people who are hurt by a loved one’s addiction.
“Sharing her story made me cry,” Sipos said. “When you listen to what happened to her, you realize the pain the family members go through. When an addict dies, the recovery for those left behind lasts indefinitely.”
“There is power in numbers, and numbers are what we need,” Markley said. “We need to reach more people and be more diverse.”
The doors for the event at the armory, 16 W. College St., will open at 5:30 p.m., with free food and pizza served until 6 p.m. There also will be attractions such as face painting.
There will be an opening prayer and moment of silence at 6 p.m., followed by speakers including Robinson, state Sen. Camera Bartolotta, R-Carroll, state Rep. Brandon Neuman, D-North Strabane, and Jim Higgins, a group supervisor with the federal Drug Enforcement Agency. Also speaking will be John Hopper, Harmony Life Center’s board president, and the board’s secretary, Bob Hedges.
In addition to the speakers, Markley said there would be various agencies with information geared to attack addiction from a therapeutic, medical or spiritual perspective.