The family of a young Sylvan Lake man who lost his battle with opioid addiction hopes to help end the shame of addiction.
Dayne Stumpf, 25, died from a drug overdose that included fentanyl on July 5, 2016.
On Saturday, the Beacon of Hope fundraiser in memory of Stumpf will be held at Hockey Central Sports Lounge in Sylvan Lake from 4 to 8 p.m.
The event will raise money for the Safe Harbour Society.
His mother, Tanya Stumpf, said she wanted to bring people together with information so everyone will be less embarrassed about addiction and more proactive when trying to help a loved one, instead of being reactive.
“When I was going through this chaos as a mother, I didn’t know what to do. I just felt like I was fumbling along and not really understanding how hard it really, really was for him.
“Not just the mental strength it would take to come out the other side, but the physical pain of detoxing,” Stumpf said.
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She said her son started using party drugs as a teen with his friends and kept experimenting. He eventually sought help at Safe Harbour Society, where he used the mat program, non-medical detox and other services.
“Safe Harbour became a lifeline for him. He felt bonded to Safe Harbour and he always wanted to heal there.”
But he needed a medical detox, which wasn’t available at Safe Harbour until 2017, she said.
“I would always be driving him to Edmonton for services. That didn’t always work out.”
She said Dayne was trying to turn his life around when he died.
“We’ve lost several young men in Sylvan Lake since he passed.”
She said in memory of her son, she wanted to help others struggling with addiction and assist the work of Safe Harbour.
“They really cared. It became evident when several staff members came to his memorial. I can’t thank them enough for what they give and what it must take from them at the end of the day,” Stumpf said.
Money from the event will help Safe Harbour raise awareness and provide education and support to clients.
Darren Dyrland, event organizer and a family friend who celebrated five years of sobriety earlier this year, said it’s important to make it easier for people to talk about addiction.
“Unfortunately, the addict everyone sees are the ones that are hanging out at Safe Harbour, the ones at Turning Point.
“They’re not seeing the Daynes, like Tanya’s son, who had a house, who had a job, or me. I was a manager. They just have the one perception of a drug addict in their head. I want to change that,” Dyrland said.
Beacon of Hope will include an open mic session, silent auction, raffles, door prizes and more.
For information, visit A Beacon of Hope in Loving Memory of Dayne Stumpf on Facebook.
szielinski@reddeeradvocate.com
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