Every year on August 31, communities around the world participate in Intentional Overdose Awareness Day; established in 2001, this global campaign honors those who have passed away from overdose and celebrates those recovering from substance abuse. Walden residents and visitors, in observance of IOAD, held a candlelight vigil last Saturday, September 5 at the village’s overdose memorial at 104 East Main Street.

Jody Nicoli, a Walden resident who began her recovery eight years ago, established the village’s candlelight vigil after her friend Jessie passed away from fentanyl in 2020. She formed the Walden Overdose Memorial Committee and erected the village’s overdose memorial, a chain-link fence adorned with dozens of padlocks representing friends and family members who lost their lives to overdoses. Nicoli and many residents return to the memorial annually to hold services for victims of substance abuse.

Attendees began arriving at the overdose memorial around 6 p.m. They received various resources from local harm reduction organizations, including the MHA in Orange County, New Life Manor, and Recovery With Heart. A few people also spoke during an open mic session, sharing stories of loved ones and their own recovery journeys. Nicoli explained the importance of International Overdose Awareness Day and encouraged everyone to share stories of those who passed away from an overdose.

“August 31 is International Overdose Awareness Day, a day to honor the lives lost to the disease of addiction and stand beside the families, friends, and loved ones who continue to carry that loss,” Nicoli said. “Today, say a prayer for the families who are missing someone they love. For the mothers, fathers, brothers, sisters, children, spouses, friends, and countless others whose lives were forever changed by a loss that never truly goes away. Say their name, tell their story, and remember who they were, not just how they died. Because every person lost to an overdose was someone’s loved one, someone’s best friend, someone’s child, someone’s parent, someone’s whole world.”

“We also celebrate the people who were given another chance at life. The ones who survived their darkest days. The ones who found recovery. The ones who are rebuilding relationships, repairing their lives, becoming parents again, finding purpose, and learning how to live instead of simply again,” she continued. “Today, we grieve for the ones we lost. Tomorrow, we keep fighting for the ones who are still here.”

Walden Mayor Becky Pearson thanked everyone for coming out to the service and expressed how proud she was of Nicoli. She gave her condolences to those grieving for loved ones and those working through their recovery.

“I just wanted to say that I’m so honored to be here. I’ve known Jody for a long time and where she’s come from, and where she’s heading is awesome,” Pearson said. “I’m sorry to all those who have lost someone and who are going through things. It is difficult, and I just want to pray for everyone that you stay strong, find your loved ones, and hold them tight, and also honor those that you lost.”

Following Pearson, Nicoli invited a special guest to the mic: Chris Lacko, an arm wrestler from Oxford, Connecticut who has been sober for eight years and two months. Lacko spoke about his life, how he became addicted, and how he recovered after 20 years of substance abuse. He explained that he found his new “high” through pursuing various activities; over the last several years, he has competed in global arm wrestling tournaments and strongman competitions, ran an ultramarathon, worked on commercials and documentaries, and built helicopters.

“I surrendered and went to rehab, and all these beautiful things happened in my life…things are a lot different today, I work with my body instead of against it,” Lacko said. “I started arm wrestling as a release, and today, we are now a four-time IFA world champion light heavyweight arm wrestler. Arm wrestling led us all over the world; we won in Sweden, France, and Canada, and it’s just amazing. We started doing strongman, and we’re a two-time Connecticut light heavy strongman champion.”

“I broke my leg four times during blackouts, my knee is fake and my ankle’s shot. Someone at work joked and said to me ‘Hey Chris, why don’t you run an ultramarathon?’ Oh yeah, I got a kick out of that. So I went to my orthopedic surgeon and they said ‘Dude, you cannot run an ultramarathon with that leg.’ Well, I need a new orthopedic surgeon because I did it,” he continued. “I also took acting classes for five years. We’re on TV now, Amazon Fire Stick, and we just filmed a commercial with Mr. Beast for Liquid Death.”

After the open mic session, Nicoli initiated the candle vigil and handed out candles to all the attendees. Everyone held out their candles in silence while attendees Christy Donovan and Tori Ferris read the names of nearly 400 overdose victims who passed away across the country. As the evening shifted into dusk, the crowd thought about friends, family members, and others who lost their lives. While these people may be gone, they will always be remembered and cherished.