79 Purple Flags Honored Lives Lost to Opioid Overdoses During Lincoln County Fair

TROY, Mo. — If you visited the Lincoln County Fair last week, you may have noticed dozens of purple flags displayed near the fairgrounds.

The display, organized by the Lincoln County Community Opioid Response Efforts (LC-CORE), featured 79 purple flags, each representing a Lincoln County resident who died from an opioid overdose during the past five years.

Positioned near the fairgrounds during one of the county’s busiest weeks of the year, the display was intended to encourage reflection, raise awareness and remember the lives behind the statistics.

“The purpose of this display is to honor those we have lost and remind our community that opioid misuse continues to affect families throughout Lincoln County,” Maddie Drapp, public health educator with the Lincoln County Health Department, said in a news release.

Organizers said each flag represented more than a statistic.

Every flag stood for a person, a family and a story, while serving as a reminder of the continuing impact opioid addiction has on communities throughout Lincoln County.

LC-CORE said it hopes the display encourages conversations about prevention, recovery and supporting those affected by substance use disorders.

The organization also invited community members to participate in International Overdose Awareness Day on Monday, Aug. 31, from 4 to 7 p.m. at Weinand Park in Troy.

LC-CORE was formed in 2019 as a partnership of healthcare providers, law enforcement, treatment professionals, mental health organizations and community members working together to reduce opioid misuse and overdose deaths in Lincoln County through education, prevention and community outreach.

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