Becky Savage with the 525 Foundation speaks to area residents about the dangers posed by opioid overdoses. She lost two sons in one night after each of the young men accepted a pill at a party. (Roger Sims / Linn County Journal)
By Roger Sims, rsims@linncountyjournal.com
On a Sunday morning, June 14, 2015, Becky Savage was busy doing morning chores in her South Bend, Ind., home. She was moving through her family’s home, cleaning and collecting laundry to throw in the washing machine. She entered the room of her son, 18-year-old Jack, who apparently was still sleeping in bed following a night of attending graduation parties.
“I remember walking into Jack’s room,” she said, adding that she remembered talking to him about picking up his laundry and looking at him, seeing his face and thinking what a beautiful young man he was.
“Jack, it’s time to get up,” she said, but she got no response. “I moved closer to him, and then I realized something was terribly wrong.”
She ran to get her cell phone, dialing 911. Her training as a nurse kicked in and she began performing CPR on him, all the while praying that when the paramedics arrived they could do what she couldn’t – save her son.
Then the story became even more tragic. Her other son, 19-year-old Nick, had been sleeping in the basement with some friends, who soon discovered that he, too, was non-responsive.
“I had no idea that he had taken the same pill,” Savage said.
Overnight the Savages’ family of six was now a family of four because of decisions to first participate in underage drinking and then to ingest a pill that was offered to them.
In presentations sponsored by the Linn County Health Department to sixth- through 12th-grade students in all three area school districts on Tuesday, Sept. 17, Savage tried to describe the pain and grief that followed. But it is unlikely that a loss of that magnitude could adequately be described.
Students line up to meet Savage following her presentation at Prairie View on Tuesday, Sept. 17. (Linn County Health Department Facebook)
Autopsies revealed that her oldest two boys had died as a result of mixing the power pain medication oxycodone with drinking alcohol.
Savage went on to give her audiences a warning about taking pills that a friend might give them. Her presentation include an image that showed how pills made in a dealer’s illicit laboratory looked like those purchased from a pharmacy with letters stamped into the pill.
According to several teachers, the students took Savage’s warnings to heart.
A presentation by Savage for the public at the Prairie View Performing Arts Center was lightly attended. Compared to auditoriums or gyms full of students, fewer than 20 people, mostly parents, health department personnel and their children, listened to her message.
Perhaps as troubling as Savage’s story was the story that continues to unfold in Linn County.
James Akes, a deputy with the Linn County Sheriff’s Office, introduced Savage at the beginning of the evening program at Prairie View.
In his opening remarks, Akes said that since Jan. 1, 2023, Linn County has had 61 suspected overdoses with Narcan (the brand name used for naloxone) used in seven of those cases to treat the victims. Naloxone is used to treat opioid overdoses, and sometimes in severe cases the drug must be administered several times to overcome the effects of the drug.
He noted that the number of suspected overdoses over the state of Kansas seems to be increasing every year, and there were 738 suspected overdoses in the state in 2022, up from 477 in 2020 and 678 in 2021.
Akes also warned that the average response time by ambulances in the county was about 12 minutes, a time critical for a suspected overdose to turn fatal, particularly when breathing is compromised or ceases.
Danielle Casey, director of nursing for the health department, said that students responded well to Savage’s presentation. Several teachers thanked health department staff and Savage for the presentation.
However, the overdose subject was one that touched a raw emotion for some students whose families had experience with a family member who took an overdose, Casey said. She added that many students at each presentation came up to speak with Savage following her talk to share their experiences with her.
Savage did not sugarcoat the role that her sons played in the tragedy. On the screen were images of their family of six before the overdoses followed by a photo of a family of four after the young men’s deaths.
“I always want to show this to students, in particular, because I want them to see that the choices they make don’t just affect them, but it affects everybody around them,” Savage said.
She characterized them as honor students, leaders, athletes and responsible young men who typically made good choices.
Savage said that the stakes are even higher now than they were 10 years ago when her sons died. With even more dangerous drugs like fentanyl on the market, parents need to make sure to have those hard conversations with their teens about the dangers of drugs.
She also said that every batch of illegal pills that authorities confiscate, seven out of 10 batches have pills that contain a dose of fentanyl that is potentially lethal.
Savage also talked about how people who were not medical professionals could administer a naloxone product like Narcan, which is administered by inhaling. She said that as long as a person called 911, stayed on the scene until emergency personnel arrived, and cooperated fully with emergency responders, they could not be prosecuted for trying to help.
She also added that even if the victim had not taken an overdose, using Narcan would not harm the victim.
Both Savage and Deputy Akes noted that the best way to address the opioid problem and possible overdoses was through education. The 525 Foundation began by the Savages outlines four steps people can take to prevent the tragedy that happened to them:
Educate Yourself and Others: Learn about the dangers of drug misuse and share this knowledge with those around you. Education is a powerful tool in prevention.
Have Conversations: Talk to your children, friends, and community members about the importance of making safe, informed choices.
Support Prevention Efforts: Whether through volunteering, donating, or participating in local initiatives, your support can make a significant difference.
Stay Connected: Follow the 525 Foundation on social media, subscribe to their newsletter, and stay informed about their ongoing efforts and events.
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