Say Boo to Drugs raises awareness for drug misuse

The sixth annual Say Boo to Drugs Trick-or-Treat event, hosted by the 525 Foundation, brought families together with music, food trucks, and Halloween fun — while also sharing vital resources about alcohol and prescription drug misuse.

The 525 Foundation was created in part by Becky Savage, who lost her two sons, Jack and Nick, in 2015 after they took prescription pills at a graduation party where alcohol was involved. The brothers were only 18 and 19 years old.

“Since this happened to our family, this tragedy, it kind of really gave me a purpose for sharing resources and sharing prevention through sharing our boys’ story,” Savage said.

The foundation’s name honors the brothers’ hockey jersey numbers — 5 and 25 — and its mission is to prevent substance misuse through education and community engagement.

“Trick-or-treating is always a fun time for families to be together,” Savage said. “But we also wanted to make sure that we were able to get resources out to the families of our community. Families could grab that information as well and take it home and maybe look at it later.”

Local law enforcement agencies and advocacy centers, including the Indiana Center for Recovery, participated in the event. Nick Gore, the center’s regional vice president of business development, said they recently opened a new adolescent program in Mishawaka for ages 12 to 17.

“That’s how you’re going to stop the generational curse of what addiction does to families,” Gore said. “By reaching the youth.”

Families also received drug disposal kits, helping ensure unused medications don’t fall into the wrong hands.

The event leads up to one of the foundation’s major annual initiatives — Drug Take Back Day. The community will be able to securely dispose of prescription medications this Saturday, Oct. 25th, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the following locations:

St. Joseph County Jail, 401 W. Sample St., South Bend

Clay Fire Station #21, 18776 Cleveland Rd., South Bend

Clay Fire Station #25, 12481 Anderson Rd., Granger

Mishawaka Fire Station #4, 3000 Harrison Rd., Mishawaka

Elkhart Police Department, 175 Waterfall Dr., Elkhart