WALES — When Joey Bush Sr. lost his son to a fentanyl overdose, he wanted to do something meaningful in Joey Jr.’s memory. He wasn’t trying to change the world, just one life — so along with family and friends, he hosted a fundraiser that generated nearly $13,000 for the Herren Project. The Rhode Island nonprofit agency is now using the money to help many people recover from drug and alcohol abuse.
“It gives my son’s passing some sense of meaning,” Bush told Reminder Publishing. “It’s allowed me to see that people need help. I don’t like seeing people that are down and out, especially when it comes to addiction,” continued the Wales man.
Bush Jr. died in 2020 when he was 23 years old. After several years of grieving, Bush Sr., with the help of family and friends, hosted the first-ever fundraiser to honor his son last summer. The event attracted nearly 250 people and raised so much money, Bush is having it again this year.
The event is having an even greater impact this summer because Bush is now talking about his own battle with substance abuse.
“I’m 23 years sober,” he said. “I lost everything I owned to my addiction. I lost my job, my home, my fiancée. My life came to a crash, and I ended up at the bus station in downtown Springfield with everything I owned in a backpack, and $20 that I borrowed from a friend,” said Bush, who is now 52, married, a homeowner and general sales manager of a Connecticut car dealership.
Bush said an outpatient program, unrelated to Herren, helped him recover, so he’s doing everything he can to boost Herren, “A national nonprofit providing free resources and support for the treatment, recovery and prevention of substance use disorder,” according to the organization’s website.
Herren relies heavily on donations. Officials from the organization were at last year’s event, and they were moved by the Bush family’s dedicated to honoring their son by helping others struggling with substance abuse.
“While they’re raising money, they’re also breaking the stigma of addiction by talking about it,” said Bonnie Sawyer, Herren’s executive director. “I’m always amazed by people like the Bush family that are willing to take their story, the loss of their loved one, and use that to try to save other lives. That is the ultimate sacrifice,” she told Reminder Publishing.
Bush said last year’s event taught him a great deal about holding a fundraiser for hundreds of people. He and his committee are paying close attention to those lessons learned—but even more compelling is what he discovered when people came to honor his son.
“Once they grasped why they were there, they realized it was more than just raffle prizes and fun. They saw they were actually helping somebody. I saw a lot of smiles. I saw a lot of people that felt really good about what they were doing,” said Bush.
This year those who attend the fundraiser will get a closer look at Joey Jr.’s life by watching a newly produced video of the young man’s drug-shortened life. Bush said his son talked about going to school to become a landscape designer. “He was a very giving person. He may not have had a lot in the world, but the kid would give you the shirt off his back,” said Bush. “He was very polite, especially to his elders.”
Bush knows the event is having an impact on people beyond those Herron is saving. He said last year a man came forward, spoke to the crowd about overcoming his own addiction, and then handed Bush $500 to support the cause.
“We’re reaching people that normally wouldn’t be reached,” said Bush. “The amount of people that came to me the day after and were just blown away by the event. It was a great feeling.”
The Overdose Awareness Fundraiser in Memory of Joey J. Bush Jr. is taking place Aug. 25, from noon – 6 p.m. at St. Stans Polish Club, 144 South St., West Warren, MA 01092. Admission is $25, which includes a chicken dinner and raffle ticket. There will be family-friendly games and activities. Organizers are also raising money through business sponsorships and raffle ticket sales, including a 50-50 raffle.
For more information about sponsorships, making a donation or attending the event, call 413-386-4166 or email JoeyBush48@yahoo.com.
