Community Quilting Event Honored Lives Lost to Addiction

Story updated on April 16, 2019: Wheeler’s Connecticut Clearinghouse at 334 Farmington Avenue, Plainville, hosted a community quilting event on Saturday, March 30 to honor the memory of those lost to substance use disorders, including opioid addiction.

This event was part of a statewide Remembrance Quilt initiative—launched in 2017 by the Connecticut Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services (DMHAS)—to honor loved ones who have died from substance use disorders or addiction.

This event was an opportunity for individuals and families to come together to remember and memorialize their loved ones in a supportive and caring environment. When displayed in the community, the Remembrance Quilts have been very powerful in reducing stigma and starting meaningful conversations about substance use,” said Judith Stonger, MA, CPS, CARC, vice president of Prevention, Wellness and Recovery, Wheeler.

Participants created a square in honor of their loved one, which will be added to statewide Remembrance Quilts, and Wheeler staff and local community volunteers from Mott Corporation were on hand to guide all activities and help bring ideas to fruition. Squares collected will be joined together by quilting groups, communities of quilters who have donated their time and talent to this effort. The quilts will continue to be displayed across Connecticut to pay tribute to those who died and help raise awareness of substance use disorders and addiction.

In the United States, one in four deaths is attributable to alcohol, tobacco, and illicit or prescription drug use. Data from the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner found that 1,038 people died of accidental drug overdose in Connecticut in 2017, and 1,017 individuals died in 2018.

For more information, visit www.ct.gov/dmhas/notforgotten, or call 800.232.4424.