New Philadelphia, Ohio - An event later this month will raise funds and awareness for local recovery programs and substance abuse services while honoring the memory of a young man whose life ended too soon.
The third-annual Joe Otte Memorial Fund Dinner will be held on Thursday, October 11, at Wood’s Tall Timber Lake Resort in New Philadelphia.
The event begins at 5:30 p.m. with appetizers and a silent auction featuring an assortment of local gift cards, a 4-pack of tickets to an Ohio State Buckeyes game, and many more great items.
Beginning at 6, local speakers will take the stage to share a message of hope along with information and insights about addiction and the recovery services available in Tuscarawas County.
The featured speakers for this year’s event will be Natalie Bollon and Andrea Dominick. Bollon is the executive director of the Alcohol, Drug Addiction and Mental Health Services Board of Tuscarawas and Carroll Counties. Dominick is a public health educator for the Tuscarawas County Health Department and the director of the agency’s Project DAWN program.
Project DAWN is a program that partners with local law enforcement and community organizations to educate the public and dispense the life-saving overdose reversal drug Naloxone at no cost to individuals at risk for an opioid overdose and their families and friends.
The program was launched in December of 2016 and was awarded a $15,000 grant from the Joe Otte Memorial Fund last year.
Beginning at 7, attendees will enjoy a three-course meal prepared by Tusco TV’s own Chef Cameron Krahel. Krahel is a graduate of Culinary Arts and Hotel and Restaurant Management program at Hocking College and previously served as the head chef at Union Country Club, The Inn at Honey Run, The Canal Tavern of Zoar, and Columbia Woodlands.
The cost to attend the event is $50 per person or $275 for a table of six, and all proceeds will go toward the Joe Otte Memorial Fund and be used to provide financial support for educational events and activities designed to raise awareness about the causes and risks associated with substance abuse.
Mary Ann Otte is the founder of the Joe Otte Memorial Fund and the mother of its namesake, Joe Otte, who died from accidental drug overdose in 2013 at the age of 31.
She says the fund was established as a way to honor her son’s memory while providing hope to those struggling with addiction and their loved ones.
“This is exactly what Joey would be wanting me to do,” she says. “Who knows where this will ever lead? Maybe all that I do is for nothing, but if one person hears, receives or thinks twice because of Joe’s namesake, I will feel that I’ve done my job on his behalf.”
Those wishing to attend this year’s Joe Otte Memorial Fund Dinner are asked to RSVP to the ADAMHS Board by Saturday, October 6. The ADAMHS Board is located at 119 Garland Drive SW in New Philadelphia and can be reached by calling 330-364-6488.
Contributions to the Joe Otte Memorial fund are accepted year round. For more information or to inquire about making a donation, call or stop by the ADAMHS Board of Tuscarawas and Carroll Counties or email Mary Ann Otte at motte@roadrunner.com.
If you or someone you know is struggling with substance abuse, there is help and there is hope. For information about local services and resources, contact the ADAMHS Board of Tuscarawas County at 330-364-6488.
STACEY CARMANY, TUSCO TV