‘The work will never be done.’ Community remembers loved ones lost to overdoses during Pittsfield memorial service and candlelight vigil

BY DYLAN THOMPSON

THE BERKSHIRE EAGLE

MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 1,2025

PITTSFIELD — If you’ve lost a loved one to an overdose, it can be difficult to talk about. Julie MacDonald, program director for Living in Recovery, is trying to make that a bit easier by fostering a community atmosphere.

“This is the way of saying, ‘Listen, you don’t have to hide,’” MacDonald said. “We can all support each other. We can hold each other up. … It’s only by talking about it that we can make change.”

Living in Recovery held its fourth annual Overdose Memorial Service & Candlelight Vigil on Sunday in observance of International Overdose Awareness Day.

On Sunday night, over 30 people gathered for Living in Recovery’s fourth annual Overdose Memorial Service & Candlelight Vigil at The Common and Park Square. The event was held to honor those lost to overdose and in observance of International Overdose Awareness Day.

Tears were shed, tissues were used and hugs were given during an emotional service honoring those who were lost. There were memory boards with photos submitted by family and friends of loved ones who lost their lives to overdose. There was also a table with grief resources and boxes of tissues.

People look at memory boards honoring those lost to overdose in Berkshire County are at The Common in Pittsfield on Sunday.

“I think that everyone came together and our hope was that people felt supported, heard and seen,” MacDonald said. “It’s definitely a smaller group that we’ve had in the past, which could be a good thing since our [overdose death] numbers are down this year.”

International Overdose Awareness Day brings a global community together with the goal of taking action on overdose, remembering those who were lost, acknowledging grief, reducing stigma and raising awareness about the impact of overdose.

People participate in the fourth annual Overdose Memorial Vigil at Park Square in Pittsfield on Sunday. The event which began with a memorial service to comfort the bereaved at The Common processed to Park Square for the “Reading of the Names” and a candlelight vigil honoring those lost to overdose.

“It’s something that has affected our culture and society in such a big way, especially over the last 10-20 years,” Dylan Lundgren, program coordinator for Living in Recovery, said.

Massachusetts experienced a more than 36 percent decrease in opioid-related overdose deaths in 2024, the state Substance Addiction Services Bureau reported in July.

In Berkshire County, a similar pattern was emerging, though the rate of decline lagged behind the rest of the state, Dr. Jennifer Michaels, medical director of the Brien Center, which provides substance abuse services, told The Eagle in July.

MacDonald said there were 41 overdose deaths in Berkshire County in 2024, with 24 in Pittsfield. She is pleased with the numbers going down, but highlights that more work needs to be done because Berkshire County still has the highest per capita ratio in Massachusetts.

People participate in the fourth annual Overdose Memorial Vigil at Park Square in Pittsfield on Sunday.

Continuing to talk about overdose deaths and addiction is important to reducing numbers, MacDonald said, adding that it’s important to normalize substance use disorder because “everybody is somehow touched by it.”

Living in Recovery’s mission is to create a welcoming and supportive environment for people seeking recovery, and they are dedicated to fostering a safe space for individuals and their family and friends affected by addiction.

They have been located at 75 North St. (though the entrance is on McKay Street) since Oct. 2023, and they provide support for people in recovery from drug and alcohol abuse.

Living in Recovery held its fourth annual Overdose Memorial Service & Candlelight Vigil on Sunday in observance of International Overdose Awareness Day. “This is the way of saying, ‘Listen, you don’t have to hide,’” Julie MacDonald, program director of Living in Recovery, said. “We can all support each other. We can hold each other up.”

The memorial service at The Common featured numerous speakers who led guided meditations, prayers and read bible verses. MacDonald spoke about the importance of continuing to cherish loved ones and how “they still live on in our memories.”

Living in Recovery staff member Quentin Anderson highlighted the way people view addiction, advocating that people need to “replace stigma with compassion” and that “we must share our collective grief for all to see.”

Living in Recovery held its fourth annual Overdose Memorial Service & Candlelight Vigil on Sunday in observance of International Overdose Awareness Day.

Lundgren led a guided meditation, helping attendees to find their loved ones. The meditation allows for people’s minds to slow down,” Lundgren said, adding, “that’s really where the memories, the pain and the love [are.]”

“Guiding that meditation around this experience of overdose awareness and kind of combining those two is what makes it powerful,” Lundgren said.

At Park Square, there was a “Reading of the Names” and a candlelight vigil to honor those lost to overdose. Attendees were given remembrance bags and asked to walk in silence from The Common to Park Square.

Names on a sheet of paper at Park Square are illuminated by an electric candle for the “Reading of the Names” during a candlelight vigil honoring those lost to overdose.

At Park Square, there were 41 signs for those who lost their lives to overdose in 2024. During the reading, people placed candles behind the signs, and tears were shed when their loved one’s name was called.

When the reading concluded, there was a moment of silence for 41 seconds to honor all the lives lost to overdose in 2024. “To all those named and unnamed, we love you,” MacDonald said.

MacDonald has worked in the recovery field for 30 years and said that International Overdose Awareness Day adds deeper meaning to her work.

“[The day] means the work will never be done,” she said. “I think the best thing I could ever do is work myself out of a job. … Every day is a day that I remember these people.”

Dylan Thompson can be reached at [email protected] or 413-496-6105.

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