Yorktown Against Heroin Throws Pig Roast to Raise Awareness of Opiod Epidemic

YORKTOWN, NY - Yorktown Against Heroin has teamed up with Westchester chef and Yorktown native Nick DiBona for its first annual fundraiser, which will be held at Peter Pratt’s Inn June 12.

The newly formed non-profit group runs anti-bullying and self-defense programs for middle-school aged children and Narcane classes for teens and adults, in Yorktown and surrounding towns. They also strive to raise awareness of the opioid epidemic that has led to addiction, overdose and death of Yorktown’s youth.

In addition to the pig roast, the event will feature a buffet prepared by DiBona, who is the owner and chef of Madison Kitchen restaurant in Larchmont; DiBona’s Bona Bona homemade ice cream, desserts by the Yorktown Feast of San Gennaro; music by Class Action, prizes, raffles and games.

“It is going to be a nice event for the whole family for an important cause to our community,” said Mike Reda, Yorktown Against Heroin’s co-chair. “Together we will continue to battle this epidemic that is affecting our youth and devastating our community.”

Yorktown Against Heroin (also referred to as the Yorktown Citizens Task Force Against Heroin) was formed when New York State Senator Terrence Murphy, a Yorktown resident, asked Yorktown Councilman Tom Diana to start the group as a non-political entity about 18 months ago. As the chair of the New York State Senate Joint Task Force on Heroin and Opioid Addiction, Murphy hoped to see a similar effort made in his hometown, where eight people have died from addiction over the last three years.

“We can no longer deny that there is a heroin and opioid epidemic and it is on the rise. It has torn apart families and is threatening our community," said Murphy. "But through awareness, education and treatment we will save lives and eventually win the war against these horrific, addictive drugs."

Diana, a former law enforcement official, asked Reda, a Yorktown father of two who currently works as a law enforcement official, to co-chair the task force and Reda was glad to join. Both say they have seen the havoc that opioid addiction causes for individuals and their loved ones and want to put a stop to it in their area. The two men then recruited local elected officials, Yorktown’s two town justices, law enforcement personnel and community members to serve on their task force and launched the group about 18 months ago. Diana was running for office at the time, but committed to running Yorktown Against Heroin regardless of whether or not he was elected because he hopes to make a real impact in his town.

“In just the Town of Yorktown alone, we had approximately 80 drug overdoses and eight fatalities from this epidemic over the last three years,” said Diana. “With more awareness and education, I want to reduce those numbers to 0.”

Yorktown’s statistics are reflective of those from other nearby towns, and of a statewide and national prescription opioid and heroin abuse epidemic. The number of opioid-related deaths rose 47 percent in New York State between 2010 and 2014, and there were 45-opioid related deaths in Westchester alone in 2014, according to a chart recently published by The Journal News. New York State Governor Andrew Cuomo and President Barack Obama to help combat the epidemic in the last few months. Cuomo announced a statewide task force to combat opioid drug abuse in New York last month and has supported adding millions to this year’s budget to help combat the problem. In March, Obama proposed to allocate $1.1 billion in new funding to help every American with an opioid use problem get the treatment they need. He has also proposed actions to increase community prevention strategies and prevent overdose deaths.  

Yorktown Against Heroin members are trying to do their part on the local level to keep kids away from heroin and teach parents that it is a realistic problem in their communities. The group holds Narcane classes to teach the public how to administer the drug that can save a life in the case of an overdose. They also hold Krav Maga and self-defense classes for children that focus on anti-bullying and character building. And, they are working on bringing a drug treatment court- a court-system that helps break the cycle of drug and/or alcohol abuse or addition for those who would otherwise face incarceration for drug or alcohol related crimes - to Yorktown.

Their mission is to provide information and raise awareness of the heroin-use epidemic in our community. “We are focusing on information, education and elimination. We will continue to work with other local organizations, law enforcement and the children and parents of our community to achieve that goal,” Diana and Reda say.

Their mission aligns well with DiBona’s passion for raising awareness of the problem in his hometown because this cause is personal for him. DiBona and his family lost his 23-year-old brother to addiction last May.

“I live and breath (the loss) every day,” DiBona says. “Not a day goes by that I don’t stop in my tracks and think about it. Addiction is so hard. Losing my brother has made me want to help people, to build awareness and to help families deal with the problem.”

The task force plans to expand their programming for kids and adults with proceeds from the fundraiser. For DiBona, the chance of reaching even just one child or family trying to help an addict makes his efforts worthwhile.

“Maybe if we knew how to deal with it, my brother would still be alive,” DiBona says. “Awareness and education is prevention. The more informed the community is, the better off we all are.”

WHERE: Peter Pratt’s Inn in Yorktown 

WHEN: 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. June 12. 

Tickets are $50 a person, $20 for children 12 and under. There will also be a cash bar. All net proceeds will be donated to Yorktown Citizens Task Force Against Heroin (Yorktown Against Heroin). For more details, view the event page here.