morristowngreen.com: Morristown concert, Green event add to NJ ‘Knock Out Opioids’ push

10/3/2018

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Knock Out Opioid Abuse Day will be observed statewide on Saturday, Oct. 6, 2018.

And a pair of events will precede it in Morristown: A free Knock Out Opioid Abuse concert will feature seven local performers at Morristown Medical Center from 5:45 pm to 8 pm on Thursday, Oct. 4.

And Morris County Sheriff James Gannon and the Hope One Van will be at the Morristown Green from noon to 3 pm on Friday, Oct. 5, to distribute information about resources to help combat drug abuse.

In 2016 — the most recent year with complete data — more than 42,000 people in the United States and 2,000 people in New Jersey lost their lives from an opioid overdose.

Provisional death counts for 2017 indicate an even higher number of drug overdose deaths, and New Jersey is on pace to have more than 3,000 such deaths in 2018.

The concert, in the hospital’s Malcolm Forbes Amphitheater at 100 Madison Ave., will showcase original songs. Audience members can vote for their favorite one as the 2018-2019 Knockout Opioid Abuse Anthem. The winning songwriter will receive $500, recording studio time and vocal coaching.

Knock Out Opioid Abuse day is organized by the Partnership for a Drug-Free New Jersey and The Community Coalition for a Safe & Healthy Morris, in cooperation with the New Jersey Division of Mental Health and Addiction Services and the Governor’s Council on Alcoholism and Drug Abuse.