Lakeland Regional High School freshmen and sophomores attended a powerful assembly on substance abuse and misuse. Joe Loonam shared his personal story of how the opioid epidemic changed his life when his son, AJ, overdosed in 2017.
Loonam’s presentation focused on fentanyl, and how powerful and addictive the synthetic opioid is. He made sure students understood that this is a new drug that is more deadly than anything our country had seen in the past, bringing up the opioid epidemic declared by President Trump in 2017. Loonam also used the powerful imagery of how much fentanyl can kill you compared to the size of a penny (pictured here). At the end of the assembly, each student took home a penny as a reminder.
Loonam, who wore Cookie Monster pajamas in honor of his son, connected with students by not starting with the story of abuse, but the story of life. Loonam showed an image of five friends at their eighth grade graduation. He challenged students to pick which one of those six young, smiling men would overdose. Although the audience did not know it, one of them was AJ. Loonam continued to connect by showing pictures and video of AJ living a life similar to almost everyone in the room: playing football, learning guitar, celebrating birthdays, graduating high school. Loonam’s poignant message also told the stories of others, to further illustrate to students how drugs like fentanyl both take lives and ruin lives.
The message did not end there. Loonam shared that he believed his son was struggling with a mental health crisis, but, as close as they were, AJ did not feel he could talk about it. Loonam stressed to students the importance of talking with those that can help them, and challenged them to start conversations today.
Speaking to students after the assembly, the Ledger heard that many found the assembly moving and emotional.
LRHS offers students support through our Student Assistance Counselor (SAC), Ms. Holly Fertel, and school counseling department. If you or someone you know is struggling with substance abuse or a mental health crisis, don’t wait; reach out today.
