MIDDLEBORO — Electronic candles lit the scene as people affected by drug abuse gathered at the Plymouth Area’s 2022 Overdose Vigil by Candlelight to remember people who died from drug overdoses.

Speeches and a slideshow honored the lives of Plymouth County residents lost to addiction. Katelyn McSweeney, an area prevention coordinator who organized the vigil, said the slideshow started nine years ago with 22 names and photos and has grown to more than 400.

Speakers included Addiction Recovery Specialist Dierdre Ryan and Matthew’s Candle Founder Mary Peckham. Ryan, a mother of three and domestic violence survivor, told her own story of recovery from addiction. 

“For the longest time, hiding in the shadows of addiction and not knowing all of these organizations and resources were available to me, to finally be a part of something bigger, it’s a beautiful thing,” Ryan said. “I’m truly blessed to be a part of it.”

Peckham told the story of her son’s overdose death and how she overcame her grief to start Matthew’s Candle. Named for her son, Matthew’s Candle organizes grief support groups for people who experienced substance-related loss.

The Plymouth Area Prevention Collaborative hosted representatives from addiction prevention, outreach, and recovery groups, including the Plymouth County District Attorney Office, the Massachusetts Organization for Addiction Recovery, Pembroke and Fuller hospitals, Volunteers of America Massachusetts and the Middleboro Police Department.

Before the speeches and slideshow, the representatives provided information about their groups, pamphlets, the overdose-countering medicine Narcan, Narcan-promoting gear, and, in the Halloween spirit, candy. 

Some groups, like the Massachusetts Organization for Addiction Recovery, focus on educating people in recovery and increasing the recovery process’s visibility, while Volunteers of America helps guide people in recovery through systems they say can be hard to navigate.

District Attorney Timothy Cruz spoke about Plymouth County Outreach, which pairs officers in Plymouth County police departments with outreach coaches to respond to overdoses. Cruz said Plymouth County has had over 600 non-fatal overdoses and 75 fatal overdoses this year.

Plymouth County saw the largest decrease of any Massachusetts county in overdose deaths from 2020 to 2021, dropping from 185 to 168, according to state data. But each loss hurts, he said.

“One is still too many,” Cruz said.

The outreach process begins with police departments logging non-fatal overdoses, according to Plymouth County Outreach Operations Supervisor Hannah Panteleos. Within 12 to 24 hours, a police officer will go to an overdose scene with an outreach coach and introduce the overdose victim to the coach who will provide information or, if needed, administer Narcan.

“People should remember that every number is a person,” Cruz said. “It’s a brother, it’s a sister, it’s a mother, a father. It is a ripple effect.”