A walk was held in honour of Justice Kent in September 2020, who was a Horse Lake resident who died of an overdose last year. The goal of the walk is to shine a light on the opioid crisis in the community, and those who have fallen victim to opioids (Photo: Justice for Justice Society / Facebook)

By Shaun Penner

Justice's Overdose Awareness Walk

Justice for Justice Society to hold Overdose Awareness Walk at Horse Lake First Nation

Aug 23, 2021 | 2:13 PM

The second ever Justice’s Overdose Awareness Walk will be taking place next week at Horse Lake First Nation.

The walk is held in honour of Justice Kent, a Horse Lake resident who passed away last year from a substance overdose.

The walk was organized by Justice’s sister Mercedes Mwemera last year, who says she wanted the walk to not only take a stand against illicit drugs and those who bring them to the community, but also to shine a light on the issues a community like Horse Lake faces when trying to combat and overcome the issue of substance abuse.

“It is such a small community, and I want us to get connected with other resources that can help us just, kind of, get out of the box that we are in,” Mwemera said. “Most reservations, it seems like they are still in that momentum that they just have to stay on reserve (for supports).”

Mwemera feels the walk held last September has helped the community take those strides forward in bridging that gap with supports and services outside of Horse Lake, which she hopes will only continue to grow with this year’s walk.

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She points to opportunities like Northreach Society’s involvement with the walk in 2020, which offered the community a way to learn how to properly use naloxone in the event of an overdose.

“It’s having that support team,” she said. “So, if we can do that in not only Horse Lake, but around (places) like Hythe, Beaverlodge, Dawson Creek, Grande Prairie, Sexsmith… then we can have more people to reach out to if we need support.”

Hoping that circle of support continues to grow, Mwemera adds she also hopes her community and other Indigenous communities can reconnect with their history and culture to overcome issues with opioids.

“I understand that drugs aren’t going to go away. But I am hoping that Indigenous people find different ways to cope that are healthy,” Mwemera said. “If we can get our culture connected back to where it belongs, that is one thing that would be a great goal in the end.”

On top of the walk, Mwemera has also created the non-profit group Justice for Justice Society.

The group, in its infancy stages, will be looking to offer funding for families going through situations like what Mwemera and her family went through, as well as help them navigate supports.

“Because when my sister passed away, nobody came out and supported us,” she said. “I understand it was COVID, but nobody reached out to us until September when I had done my sister’s walk. That’s when people decided to call me,” Mwemera said.

“Having something like that is going to benefit people just in general. Because they are not going to be stressing about how they are going to bury their child, or their relative,” she added. “Instead, it’s going to be ‘let’s reach out to Justice for Justice Society’. Let’s ask them what steps we can take to help our healing journey.”

The 2^nd annual Justice’s Overdose Awareness Walk will take place on August 31 at 6 p.m., beginning at the Horse Lake Multiplex. Mwemera says starting at 5 p.m., Northreach Society and Western Cree Tribal Council will be onsite to offer naloxone training.

There will also be an opening prayer and traditional drumming and dancing to start the walk. A dinner will then be happening following the walk.

More on the walk and the Justice for Justice Society can be found here.