Candlelight Vigil To Mourn Lives Lost To Opioid Crisis

HAMPTON BAYS, NY — For many, Mother's Day weekend will hold not happy gatherings, cards, gifts and love-filled laughter, but instead, the tears and heartbreak of empty chairs and bright lights dimmed too soon due to the opioid crisis that's cutting a vicious swath across the fabric of countless lives.

On Saturday, a Candlelight Vigil will be held from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. at 9A Squiretown Road, at Good Ground Park in Hampton Bays, sponsored by the Southampton Town Opioid Addiction Task Force.

For Drew Scott, who lost his beautiful, talented granddaughter Hallie Ulrich to an overdose, who saw his life torn apart forever when she was found lifeless on a road in East Hampton, the event is deeply personal.

Scott, co-chair of the task force, said 400 candles will be lit for Suffolk County victims and 19 for Southampton Town victims.

Soft music will be played for those grieving the unspeakable — and Scott will read a poem Hallie wrote.

As her grandfather, the night will be filled with emotion, a reminder of a beautiful life cut short by the cold cruelty of addiction. "It’s a bittersweet way to let people know what a beautiful and talented girl she was," he said. I want people to know how she fought to end her opioid addiction — but time ran out for her."

Scott shared Hallie's words: "Shortly before she died, she wrote, "Seriously, though, story time, but not now, for I have grown weary, this day has made me tired, so I bid you farewell in hopes that I will receive lovely dreams from my subconscious . . . Good night.”

And for all who have shared the pain, the vigil will offer a chance for solace and shared memories.

"It is Mother's Day weekend. As such, we thought the Saturday night vigil would be poignant — to come together as a community to remember those who have been lost to the opioid epidemic," Scott said.

Patch courtesy photo.