LAS VEGAS, Nev. (FOX5) – The homeless advocacy group Shine A Light is getting set for a big event to help prevent people from dying from overdoses.
“We understand what’s going on on the ground floor. I’ve been to seven funerals this year so far and probably received 50 calls of people that have overdosed and people that we’ve lost. And it’s probably more than that, to be honest with you,” said Robert Banghart, Outreach Director for the Shine A Light Foundation.
Banghart says Shine A Light and the national group Mobilize Recovery are organizing “Narcan at Night” on Saturday, September 28.
Teams will be out on the streets handing out kits that include free Narcan doses, which can quickly reverse an opioid overdose. Banghart says kits will also include Fentanyl and Xylazine test strips, which can detect the dangerous drugs within other drugs.
He says community partners help provide products.
This year is the second year of the event and Banghart says they’re hoping to hand out between 8,000 and 12,000 free doses of Narcan. With “Narcan at Night” and the big Pride event in October, Banghart hopes to distribute up to 18,000 doses of Narcan.
“We’ve even got a plan in place if we can’t get enough, we’re going to fly a couple of our friends to California and rent a truck and drive it back. We’ve got some great partners at End Overdose out in California that have been more than willing to help us out if we can get out there and grab it,” said Banghart.
Banghart says while they hope to get Narcan and the test strips into the hands of people who need them, teams also want to educated people about services to treat their addictions.
“I was homeless, and I lived three blocks from the homeless corridor, and I had no idea where services were for the first year I was homeless; lost in my addiction. And I didn’t even know where to go to get help. So, we have to go out into the community and spread the word,” said Banghart.
He added, “We just want to help people. That’s all we care about. We want to keep people alive because this is our community. The longer they stay alive the more likely they are to be connected to those services.”
For more information on donating or volunteering for the event contact Robert Banghart at [email protected]
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