LI's March To The Sea Unites Families Fighting The Opioid Crisis

SUFFOLK COUNTY, NY — The opioid epidemic is running rampant around the nation and the Suffolk County community is learning to cope and manage grief after losing loved ones to overdose-related deaths.

One coping mechanism that's been shared between people around the United States is the Trail of Truth, a 2023 event where 2,000 homemade tombstones were placed near the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C., to memorialize those lost overdoses and demand change.

On Sunday, Trail of Truth is coming to Suffolk County as the March to the Sea, where the loved ones of people who've died from opioids will carry "artful tombstones" as part of the national Trail of Truth initiative.

"The intention is to blaze a trail along the presidential campaign tour to call attention to the loss of life, the legion of grieving family members left in the wake and to call on elected officials, nationally and locally, to commit to responsible and transparent spending of the Opioid Settlement Funds nationwide," said Carole Trottere, who lost her son Alex to fentanyl in 2018.

The Long Island Trail of Truth will take place on Sunday, October 6 at 11 a.m. starting off in Robert Moses State Park Beach Field 5 in Babylon. A multitude of people who have suffered the loss of loved ones to opioids will be carrying tombstones towards the shoreline, where they will be placed in the sand with the Fire Island Lighthouse as a backdrop.

Attending the March to the Sea will be Truth Pharm and Trail of Truth founder Alexis Pleus, who also works with End Overdose: New York, the New York State Harm Reduction Association, the National Coalition for Harm Reduction and the Opioid Network.

Anyone interested in creating a tombstone to carry in the March to the Sea may contact Lori Carbonaro, who lost her son to heroin in 2014, at 631-413-8356.