Churches unite for Chicora Park event to fight addiction
Churches in Chicora, Karns City and East Brady are collaborating for a cause.
Community Family Fun Day “With a Purpose” will be from 2 to 9 p.m. Sunday in Chicora Park on Route 68.
The Rev. John Pistorius, pastor of St. John's Reformed Church in Chicora and president of the Petroleum Valley Ministerium, said the event has been in the works for more than a year.
“Pastor Mark Wallace, Pastor Jim Lewis and I formed a committee with a number of church members in May 2017.
“The vision for this grew in 2016 out of two Walks of Hope and the showing of the movie 'An Appalachian Dawn' which tells the story of churches in Kentucky uniting against addiction,” Pistorius said.
The pastors had seen the consequences of drugs and addiction in their communities and in their congregations.
“Too many lives are being lost. Too many funerals are for those who died from addiction. We believe we must meet the needs of the community of people who are suffering as a result of addiction and the loss of life,” said Pistorius.
The group erected a field of crosses as part of its awareness campaign. The 74 crosses represent the 74 lives known to be lost to drug addiction in Butler County in 2016.
“The T-shirts which were placed on the crosses Monday morning tell the story of a life lost by stating the gender and the date of death,” said Wallace. The concept came from a church in Evans City.
“People in our community need to understand the epidemic we are facing,” Wallace added.
Wallace had prayed about the drug problem but the reality of the epidemic hit home with a phone call.
“One evening my phone rang and it was one of my guys, Rich, crying and telling me that his nephew overdosed on heroin and was dead. He also asked me to do the funeral. It struck me then that this was not just a Butler problem, it was our problem,” Wallace said.
Sunday's event is free and open to the public and will feature food, games, a bounce house and slide, an obstacle course, a free auction and music.
A full report will appear in the Butler Eagle.
