This past Sunday evening I attended a
community meeting that was held in the sanctuary of St. Andrew’s Episcopal
Church. The reason for the meeting was
to discuss a disturbing and terrifying problem that we face in our town and in
our county: the rampant use of heroin and other illegal drugs. The meeting was attended by more than 100
people, many of whom have lost a family member or friend to a heroin overdose
in recent years, many of whom have a loved one who is currently addicted to
heroin, and many of whom are recovering heroin addicts themselves. The sheriff and many sheriff’s deputies were
also present.
During the two hour meeting, which
was organized by a local woman whose daughter is currently in a rehabilitation
facility because of her heroin addiction, we heard heartbreaking stories of
local people—our neighbors—dying from heroin overdose. Although I’d seen articles in the paper, I
didn’t really start to realize how bad the heroin problem was in town until I
spoke with church member and sheriff’s deputy, Bruce Stolsenberg, and he filled
me in. I still didn’t really grasp the
magnitude of the problem, however, until I attended the meeting at St. Andrew’s. Washington Court House and Fayette County are
in the midst of an out of control full blown heroin epidemic. Surely not our little Mayberry of a town, right? Sorry, folks, this town isn’t Mayberry
anymore. Drugs are way up. Drug deaths are way up. Theft is way up. Child Neglect is way up. Prostitution is way up. Our town is in critical condition and just
covering our ears and eyes and trying to wish ourselves back to the 1950’s isn’t
going to do anything but cost more lives.
To be painfully honest with you, I came away from that meeting very
concerned about raising my family in this community. That’s how pervasive and aggressive this problem is. It was absolutely terrifying to hear what is going on all over the county, but some of it not very far from the church and manse.
So what can we do here at First
Presbyterian Church? Ultimately I don’t
know what we can do, but I have come up with a few ideas for starters. Here they are:
1. Get your head
out of the sand. Realize that this isn’t
just someone else’s problem. This is
your town, your home. Your kids and
grandkids are at high risk of being exposed to heroin and other illegal drugs
just by the fact that they live in Fayette County, Ohio. Also, just because you’re not poor living in
a rundown trailer doesn’t mean you or your kids aren’t at risk. Most of the folks at the meeting came from
the middle class.
2. Show up at
community meetings. If you aren’t a part
of the solution then you are a part of the problem. Don’t go to these meetings to judge or shame
people. Don’t even go to talk. Go to listen.
God gave us two ears and only one mouth for a reason. Hear what your neighbors are going through. Hear what your kids are exposed to. Keep a look out for the next meeting, which
is supposed to be held at one of the school buildings in early April. When we find out the date, we need to make a
huge effort for every FPC member to be there.
3. Heroin abuse
often begins with the abuse of prescription opiate painkillers. If you have any painkillers sitting around
your house from past surgeries take them to the police department or sheriff’s
department as soon as possible. Do not
leave them lying around. Holding on to
them is like holding on to a lit match in a town covered in gasoline. Get rid of them today.
4. Build people up. Tell young people how proud you are of them. How much of a blessing they are. Help them set attainable goals. Take an interest in them. It came up again and again that people usually start abusing drugs because they feel worthless. Someone at the meeting said something to the effect of, "There is a dark cloud over this town. The reason the drug dealers knew they could sell a ton of drugs here is because so many people in this town have no job prospects, no direction, and no hope." That's the perfect recipe for a drug epidemic.
5. Pray. Start today.
Start right now. Don’t stop. Pray without ceasing for this county, for this
town, for these families, for those who are addicted, for those who are taking
it one day at a time trying to stay clean, and pray for the drug dealers. Pray that the Holy Spirit would break through
their frozen hearts and convict them of the evil they are committing and that
they would repent, turn themselves in, and give life to others for a change
instead of dealing out death.
May God hear our prayers,
Pastor Everett
