1 year, 58 lives
Miss. first responders, Narcan aid 58 victims
There are 58 names that won’t be tallied at the end of the year as drug overdose deaths in Mississippi. ❚ According to recent statistics, Mississippi law enforcement officers and first responders have saved those lives since the distribution of naloxone, or Narcan, was launched in August 2017. ❚ But initially, there were those who criticized the idea of putting naloxone directly into the hands of law enforcement and first responders aside from EMTs and paramedics who were already carrying it. ❚ “A year ago we said, ‘We’ve got this free Narcan. Who wants it?’ and nobody raised their hand,” said Angela Mallette of Stand Up, Mississippi. ❚ “But MBN and MHP set a great example, and the progress on that forefront has been huge,” she said, referring to the Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics and the Mississippi Highway Patrol. ❚ Department of Public Safety Commissioner Marshall Fisher knew that with the opioid crisis increasing in Mississippi, the move was integral to the fight.
“I don’t want to come across like I had a crystal ball, but my vision of what was ahead was that we would save lives. Honestly we thought it would be a success if we saved anybody,” he said. “Now we’ve had around 58, which is pretty good. We can’t run the flag up and claim victory just yet, but this is progress.”
The Department of Mental Health has distributed approximately 10,000
“There are always people there that will help you, whether you go to the website and make a trainer card based on your ‘Pokemon Go’ trainer information or you download the app,” Hanan said. “If you need help, we’re around.”
Olive Branch resident Kristi McCoy spends a lot of time in the park and said she really values the well-kept park space and the Silph Road’s research and information when playing.
“I like that the Silph Road keeps me updated. I don’t have the time to go and read and research everything, and I can always count on them to give me the CliffsNotes version,” she said. “It helps me remember all meetups I’ve attended. And through the Silph Road, I’ve met so many fun, new people that I never would have met otherwise.”
Olive Branch City Park has proved to be a great location for players to catch a good variety of Pokemon with numerous Pokestops, where players can get items needed to catch Pokemon, and Pokemon Go Gyms, where players have virtual battles.
Matthew Ellis and his family drive to Olive Branch from Batesville, Mississippi, to attend each monthly Community Day meetup.
“There really isn’t that much in my small town, and I really like spending time with all the friends I’ve made here through the Silph Road,” he said. “The Silph Road was the best way to connect with everyone.”
Hanan said the Silph Road helps make the game more accessible for its wide range of players.
“We have ‘Pokemon Go’ kids that play with their parents, and those parents have parents that play. The player base is multi-generational and from all different socio-economic backgrounds,” she said. “And Silph is dedicated to helping them all. It makes the game more accessible for casual players, not only those avid video game fans.”
Among the things continually researched by the Silph Road is the rarity of some Pokemon and how “Pokemon Go” has incorporated real-life weather conditions to influence the type of Pokemon that appear in the game.
While some of this sounds very technical, what the Silph Road does very well is take all this technical data and make it easy to understand, including real-world maps of Pokemon nesting locations.
The Silph Road also encourages players to be good stewards of the parks and other areas they play in, as well as support the community in other ways. Under Hanan’s guidance those attending Community Day in Olive Branch City Park have donated items for Olive Branch Food Pantry, Southaven Animal Shelter and Olive Branch’s B. J. Chain Public Library’s summer reading program.
The Silph Road recently launched an app for Android users available in the Google Play Store; the iOS version of the app is in beta testing and should be available in the iOS App Store soon. When complete, Silph Road users will have a trading marketplace and access to the wealth of Silph research all in one convenient place on their phones.
For more information or to make a Silph Road trainer card, visit thesilphroad.com or email WTNRoad@gmail.com.