International Overdose Awareness Day 2026

Team Sharing-PA will host its 7th Annual International Overdose Awareness Day Ceremony of Remembrance on Monday, August 31, 2026, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Pennsylvania State Capitol Complex, 501 N. 3rd Street, Harrisburg. The event is free and open to the public. International Overdose Awareness Day (IOAD) is the world’s largest annual campaign to end overdose, remember without stigma those who have died, acknowledge the grief of family and friends, and take action to prevent future deaths. This year marks the campaign’s 25th anniversary, with the international theme: “25 Years On: Still Needed.” For 25 years, International Overdose Awareness Day has brought communities together to remember those who have died and take action to save lives. The difficult truth behind this year’s theme is that, after a quarter-century of awareness and advocacy, the day is still needed. Overdose continues to take lives and affect families in communities throughout Pennsylvania and around the world. But overdose deaths are preventable. Education, harm reduction, access to evidence-based treatment, recovery support, reducing stigma, and connecting people to services can save lives. The Harrisburg event will bring together grieving families, people in recovery, state and local leaders, treatment and recovery professionals, harm-reduction organizations, advocates and members of the public for a day focused equally on remembrance, education, hope and action. Pennsylvania Capitol to Shine Purple The observance will begin the evening before the ceremony. On Sunday, August 30, the Pennsylvania State Capitol will be illuminated in purple, joining landmarks around the world that light up in recognition of International Overdose Awareness Day. At 7:30 p.m., families and supporters will gather outside the Capitol to place hundreds of purple flags along the surrounding streets, each creating a visible reminder of the human impact of substance-use-related deaths. Purple candles will be lit in memory of loved ones lost, and participants will gather in front of the illuminated Capitol to send a powerful message: those who have died will not be forgotten, and Pennsylvania communities remain committed to preventing future deaths. A Ceremony Centered on the Lives Behind the Numbers Monday’s ceremony will begin with an opening prayer by Danny Albert, founder and CEO of Hero in the Fight, followed by a memorial dove release, accompanied by live guitar music performed by Torie Bish. Throughout the Capitol grounds, photographs, banners and personal memorabilia will put faces and stories to a public-health crisis too often represented only by statistics. “The event is the one day we get to come together publicly and remember our children and loved ones lost to substance use,” said Brenda Deckman of Team Sharing-PA. “Their photographs and memorabilia will fill the Capitol steps, and banners will show the faces of people Pennsylvania families love and miss every day. We want people to see that behind every overdose statistic was a person with a name, a story, a family, and a life that mattered.” Erika Shambaugh who lost two sons to substance use added, “But remembrance is only part of why we gather. We are also bringing together people who are working every day to prevent another family from experiencing this loss. We want people to leave better informed about overdose prevention, harm reduction, treatment and recovery—and knowing that there is hope and that lives can be saved.” Pennsylvania Leaders, Advocates and Families to Speak The program will feature perspectives from government, treatment and recovery, harm reduction, grief support, advocacy and families directly affected by substance use and overdose.

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