“It was very, very powerful how it spoke to myself regarding opioids. It changed my opinion about those that had been affected by opioids. It really spoke to my heart and said,’I needed to take a second look at people, and not everyone is the same.’ There’s challenges.”
Mayor Gerald Aalbers is inviting everyone to come to the Civic Centre Auditorium to experience the Opioids Don’t Discriminate exhibit which is on this week until Sunday at 6:00 p.m.
Aalbers said when he first saw it, rather than reinventing the display, the FCSS team worked on getting the Strathcona display to Lloydminster. He encouraged people to come see it for themselves and emphasized just how much it changed his perspectives on addictions.
“When you think of an adult having a sports injury, leading to an opioid crisis. ‘No that couldn’t happen.’ I challenge you to come down and see firsthand what can happen in one’s life. having gone through major surgery, I can easily understand dealing with pain. And when that pain does not go away, it’s a serious issue.”
The exhibit continues everyday from 2-6 p.m. This Saturday it opens earlier at 10 a.m. and Sunday, the virtual wrap up will be livestreamed from 10 a.m. and then the exhibit will be open to in-person visitors from noon until 6 p.m.
A keynote virtual talk from Petra Schulz of Moms Stop the Harm will be streamed Friday November 5th at 6:00 p.m. Schulz’s youngest child Danny died of an overdose. Residents may register for this online at EventBrite.
In-person access will be permitted according to COVID policies, that is proof of vaccination and/or a negative test within 72 hours. Also, the Auditorium has a maximum capacity of 40 visitors at a time. Mandatory masking and sanitization is required once inside.
More information can be found on the City’s website.