Originally written and published by Sarah Teague for The Standard on October 19, 2019. Click here to be directed to the original posting. Visuals by Sarah Teague.
A dramatic spike in opioid drug overdoses hit Greene County this week. At the time of publication, 20 people overdosed, two of which were fatal, according to a release from the City of Springfield. The first overdose was documented on Oct. 16 at 2 p.m.
Emergency and Medical Services personnel formally alerted local officials of this spike in an Oct. 17 meeting after hitting double digits in overdoses the night before. Springfield Fire Chief David Pennington addressed local “health and public safety agencies,” the release stated.
“I felt it was important to treat this as the emergency situation that it is, and further coordinate a response,” Pennington said at the meeting. “It will take all of us working together to address the disease of addiction which has impacted every corner of our city.”
The community responds
David Stoecker, executive director for Better Life in Recovery, jumped into action following the city’s announcement. Stoecker said his reaction to the news of a lethal batch of opioids in Springfield was to immediately post warnings of the drug to his Facebook account to spread awareness. Stoecker, who used drugs for over 25 years, has stayed sober for a decade. He dedicates his time to educating others on saving those in a life of drug addiction.
Because of his post, Stoecker said the Springfield Recovery Community Center (SRCC), a branch of Better life in Recovery, stayed busy.
“We took calls all night long and direct messages for people who were looking for Narcan, wanting to get equipped (and) wanting to get trained,” Stoecker said.
Narcan is the first and only FDA-approved nasal treatment of naloxone for opioid overdoses and can be purchased from a pharmacist without a doctor’s prescription. According to its website, Narcan was created for not only healthcare professionals, but also friends and family with no medical training.
Greene County resident Claude Schuler walked into the SRCC Friday with his stepsister Lena Hamaker and asked how he could help. He wanted Narcan just in case he came across the worst case scenario — someone overdosing.
He heard about free Narcan rescue kits at the SRCC through Missouri House Representative Crystal Quade who posted a call to action on her Facebook page which, in part, read: “There is currently a lethal batch of heroin in Springfield. Get the word out and let people know.”
“I have experience with being a recovering heroin addict myself,” Schuler said. “Narcan saved my life before and since … I’ve never (used heroin) again. It’s been over four years and I wouldn’t be here if it (weren’t) for community resources like this.”
Schuler said the first person to find him overdosing was his mother. His mother and a paramedic saved his life by administering Narcan.
PHOTO: Claude Schuler, Greene County resident, said he used heroin for three years. Now sober, he uses his experience to save others living in addiction.
“There is a knife cutting through the community right now,” Schuler said. “It’s going to kill a lot of people if we’re not careful.”
Stoecker demonstrated to Claude and Lena how to administer Narcan, before meeting with another community member, Erica Woolman.
Woolman came by the SRCC Friday for the same reason — she’s worried she’ll find someone overdosing, especially since she works with people on the street weekly as a co-founder of 417 Middle of the Road, a homeless outreach program in Springfield.
Woolman said it’s scary when a new batch of drugs come to town. She said working with the homeless, she sees drug use often, but her team doesn’t judge those who come for help.
“I’ve been in their shoes too,” Woolman said. “I know what that’s like and I’ve been there and I’ve done the drugs. I’ve used (drugs) to cope and ignore life.”
PHOTO: Erica Woolman
Woolman’s organization holds outreaches every Saturday in the Springfield Veterans Affairs Center’s parking lot giving out clothes, free food and other resources to those living on the streets.
“I was so glad to see that we could come up here and get (Narcan) so if something does happen at one of the outreaches, we’re ready,” Woolman said.
Educating the public
Since the spike, public safety officials are warning Springfield residents that drugs do not discriminate, but can impact people from every background, according to the release.
“We need people to know we are in the middle of an epidemic,” said Dr. Jake Spain, Mercy emergency medicine physician and Springfield Fire Department’s medical director. “Because coming out of addiction takes time and can take multiple attempts, we need to educate the entire community on lifesaving measures.”
Stoecker echoed this concern. He said his experience has taught him misinformation about drug addiction distracts the public from what is important — saving lives. He shared his story.
“The people who were supposed to love and care for me didn’t (growing up),” Stoecker said. “One night I took a walk and walked into a kid about my age and we ended up smoking marijuana. I found the more I smoked, the less I thought about the abuse.
“Over the next 25 years I would advance into methamphetamines and opioids. I would be in and out of jail. I’ve died eight different times. In that entire 25 years I would tell you I never had a drug problem — I had a drug solution.”
At Better Life in Recovery, Stoecker and his team strive to give hope and support to people living with an addiction, friends and family of those addicted and others walking through recovery. He gave several harm reduction tips for people living with addiction, including getting Narcan trained.
PHOTO: David Stoecker used drugs for over 25 years. Now sober, he opened a recovery center in Springfield and spends his time supporting people in his community who are addicted to drugs and those recovering, and their families.
Using drugs alone or behind a locked door is another risk, he said. People should only use around those they trust and stagger drug use with friends in case one overdoses, so someone can call 911.
Stoecker said sampling a new batch is a smart move in case the batch is bad. “You can always go back and do more, but you can never go back and do less,” he said.
If you haven’t used in a few days, wean yourself back onto the drug — the body loses its tolerance around 3-5 days, and a large dose could send someone into overdose.
And he encourages those who have the urge to use to never share needles and to rotate injection sites.
“I’m big on harm reduction but I didn’t used to be,” Stoecker said “But the more people who died (the more) I realized we need to keep people alive long enough to get them to where I’m at. Everybody deserves an amazing life in recovery, a better life in recovery.”
Do you need help?
See a full list of community resources, including a 24-hour crisis line, here: https://www.springfieldmo.gov/3683/Mental-Health-Resources
