Love Will Carry – Benefit Event

The New York State Office of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Services (OASAS) estimates that one in 13 New York State residents suffer from a substance abuse disorder. This statistics shows us that the chances of knowing someone or being affected is not uncommon. This past October, we lost a dear friend, a phan and a top-notch member of the Buffalo community, Devin Coe. Devin was 31 years old. We have seen first-hand how our friend, our community, and our city is struggling with the opioid epidemic. It is important to us to raise awareness and destigmatize this topic to encourage the conversation towards recovery.

A group of Devin’s friends has teamed up to host a fundraiser on Sunday, March 26th at Buffalo Iron Works, located at 49 Illinois Street, from 3-7pm. This family-friendly event will have community service providers, free narcan, live music, food & drinks, basket raffles, and much more!

Music, doggies, and community were all very important aspects of Devin’s life, and we have decided the beneficiaries for this event will be: The Divided Sky Foundation of Ludlow, VT, and locally, Saving the Michaels of the World, and Puppy Mill Rescue Team.

We chose The Divided Sky Foundation to assist them in their mission of delivering quality care and compassionate treatment for those suffering with addiction. Their approach incorporates mindfulness and solution-based programming to encourage guests to learn coping skills, life skills, and communication skills taught in workshops and daily lessons. These efforts are the outgrowth of founder, lead guitarist of Phish, Trey Anastasio’s, lived experience, and his desire to support those in early sobriety.

We chose Saving the Michaels of the World to raise awareness of prescription and other drug addictions here in WNY. The founders, Michael’s parents, know first-hand the devastation that abuse and misuse of these controlled substances. Saving the Michaels House of Hope and Community Resources supports families during their loved ones journey through addiction into remission. They provide a nurturing and supportive environment to parents, grandparents, and spouses of individuals seeking treatment. They practice compassion, promote an education, self-help, and wrap around care before, during, and after treatment.

We chose the Puppy Mill Rescue Team because if you knew Devin, you knew that he loved his doggies, Bruin & Brother with his whole heart. They travelled the country with him and they played an important role in his life. Devin would want to help other pups to find forever homes too!

In addition, we want to give a HUGE shout out to Nathan, Jeff, Bryan, Travis and James of Buffalo’s own Prog Rock and Jamtronica sensation, Cypher. They will be providing us with two sets of Phish covers and high-energy rock like no other band before!

Check out our Facebook Event Page “Love Will Carry Us Through” for more information and event updates.

We hope that you consider joining us on Sunday, March 26th!

In love and light,

Erica Martone           Samantha McClive              Lauren Merriman                Midori Ohtake