Alliance leads discussion about illicit drug use in Joplin

May 5—Fentanyl, a strong opioid, is changing the face of drug use and abuse across the country and in Joplin.

It's a dangerous trend because a tiny amount of fentanyl can be lethal.

Joplin police School Resource Officer Aaron Gooch told those attending a panel discussion Thursday at the Harry M. Cornell Arts & Entertainment Complex that overdose calls in Joplin remained steady at about 50 a year between 2013 and 2019, but then they shot up to about 100 a year in 2019 and have continued to climb ever since.

"Fentanyl, heroin and the combination of those drugs have definitely affected the number of overdoses we're seeing," Gooch said. "With fentanyl, the main problem is the accidental overdoses, and they're accidental overdoses because a lot of the times people don't even know that what they're taking contains fentanyl. So they might be thinking they're taking one thing they've taken before and they expect to know the effects of but it may be a counterfeit pill that contains a lethal dose of fentanyl."

The Alliance of Southwest Missouri hosted the town hall on fentanyl, heroin and other drug abuse at the complex. The two-hour conversation included a panel of experts, law enforcement officers, a pharmacist, a man who lost his nephew to abuse of pain killers, and medical professionals, and the message across the board was the same — "education is the cornerstone of prevention."

Tragic death

Jayson French, the president of the Christ in Youth ministry based in Joplin, told a riveting story about his nephew, a talented baseball catcher who ultimately turned to pain killers to battle the chronic pain he suffered because of kneeling behind the plate.

Eventually, pain killers took over his life, leading him to drop out of college and to accidentally overdose.

French said his nephew started playing baseball at age 7 and quickly stood out to coaches as a talented catcher.

"He started playing travel ball long before the travel ball world was a big deal," he said of his nephew. "I I think he was probably 7 or 8 years old when he started catching. He got into high school and started having troubles; his knees just started hurting all the time. He wasn't wearing the knee savers and that kind of stuff, and when you're a catcher, at that point in travel ball you're really the only catcher on the team so you're catching every single game after game after game after game. There's not really anyone to step in. You're the only one behind the plate.

French said the pain in his knees and back and shoulders became too severe for over-the-counter painkillers like ibuprofen, Tylenol or Advil.

"That wasn't quite enough," French said. "He started going to doctors to get some help ... and I don't want to get into the particulars of the pills he was using to mask the pain so he could play. The tough thing in our culture is this, we celebrate these athletes who persevere, and I'm not trying to come down on professional sports.

"We celebrate that, we champion that, we want to raise young men and young women who can push through pain. That constant question gets asked: Are you hurt or are you injured? if you're injured, you're out, but if you're hurt, you go back in. You go and that's almost expected."

Eventually his nephew had to drop out of college. And he became a father.

One evening he was caring for his 6-month-old son by himself and he prepared a bottle for the boy knowing he'd have to get up in the middle of the night to give him that bottle.

"He set the bottle right there, and then before he went to bed, to deal with his pain, he overdosed and didn't realize it," French said.

French said he and his wife eventually became the adoptive parents of his nephew's baby son and that they're working to make sure "this cycle of addiction is broken in his life."

Part of the solution

About 100 people attended the town hall. Kate Kelley, director of community programing for the Alliance, and an organizer of the event said she was pleased with the turnout.

"It's really encouraging to see this many people here. I can't tell you how often we do host something for the community or we invite parents to something we tailored just for them, a message just for them, and it's a slim crowd. But to know that this is a great crowd here in person."

Many of the people in the audience were from the New Beginnings Sanctuary, a home for people who are recovering from substance abuse or other problems.

Mechell Procter, Joplin, one of those residents, said she is an ex-heroin and ex-fentanyl addict, and she wants to spread the word that people like her can change, but that it's too easy to become addicted to something like fentanyl.

"You could be one of those people up there on the stage and something bad happens to you in life and you become an addict just like I did," Procter said. "And then you're whole life turns around and you're on this end instead of being on that end anymore. My father died in a tragic way, and it took me into using the pills."

She said people need to judge less and work hard on becoming part of the solution.

"Talk to your children about it, show them YouTube videos, make them aware," Proctor said.