Member and Advocate Spotlight

Where we highlight some of our members and advocates from across Canada.

Our members do incredible work in their communities to raise awareness of the drug poisoning crisis in different ways.

Some facilitate our peer support groups, Holding Hope ,and our peer bereavement support groups, Healing Hearts, while others work in advocacy for MSTH in their communities and provinces.

To find out how YOU can become more involved please connect with us at info@momsstoptheharm.com

Why did you become a member of Moms Stop the Harm?

I became involved with MSTH back in 2018 after losing one of my foster children to fentanyl poisoning. I was connected to the organization by Angela Welz who was looking into the Office of the Child and Youth Advocate Special Report on deaths of youth in care that my son was featured in. I felt like I had nowhere to turn and that people judged my grief based on the fact that we weren’t blood related. I went on to lose another foster youth, cousins, countless friends, and the father of my children to opioid poisonings and MSTH was there for me the entire time.

What does being an advocate mean to you?

Being an advocate means amplifying the voices of those who struggle to be heard. Advocacy is not about speaking for people, but about creating space for their truth, dignity, and rights to be recognized in systems that don’t serve them well. 

In the case of my foster children, they fell through the cracks of the broken systems when they turned 18 and “aged out” of the child welfare system. In addition to joining MSTH, I ended up starting a non-profit organization that supports system-involved youth in transitioning to adulthood called Sweetgrass Youth Alliance. 

Being an advocate also means knowing your stuff. Basing your views on facts such as the health data that shows harm reduction strategies work and forced treatment doesn’t. The current political climate in Alberta right now is dangerous for people who use drugs and does not prioritize scientifically proven approaches.

What do you want people to know about Moms Stop the Harm?

I want people to know that MSTH is full of feisty, driven members who are fighting the good fight to help change policy and implement change. They are people who have chosen to turn a tragedy into a passion.

There are many services being offered by MSTH that you cannot find anywhere else and most importantly, they are being run by people with lived or living experience. MSTH keeps up with the political climate and adjusts their advocacy accordingly. For example, currently in my community the last place that people who use drugs could go to use safely (a small trailer run by Alberta Health Services) has been recently shut down and MSTH members rallied to reverse this decision.