Ten schools from Cuyahoga County attended a panel at the Medical examiner’s office on Friday, Jan. 29. The topic of the panel was heroin.
In Summit County alone, 162 deaths from opiate overdoses occurred last year. In response to this problem, a program known as Disposal of Unused Medications Properly (DUMP) was called to help. The program began in 2011, and so far has collected almost 600,000 pounds of unused medications.
Chagrin Falls students, including sophomore Allie Kovatch, junior Bennett Eagle and seniors Molly Burke and Madeline Michaels, attended the panel with guidance counselor Julie Beckerman. Students were able to ask questions to the panel which consisted of officials, recovering drug addicts and family members who have been affected by drug abuse.
“I was shocked by the amount of people who died annually from heroin overdoses. I wasn’t aware of how widespread heroin was in Ohio,” said Bennett Eagle. “It was a great experience and I learned a lot from it. We were given many stories from those affected and they made us aware of how serious it is.”
The students who attended the panel were so moved by the experience, that, with the help of student council, they plan to attend the panel again next year.
Submitted by Joe Bistirz
