GALLERY: At the Capitol, a day of remembrance and action for those affected by opioid, substance use

On Monday morning, the Pennsylvania chapter of Team Sharing, a support and advocacy group for mothers and fathers who have lost children to substance use, joined grieving families on the Capitol steps to remember their loved ones and call for more action from leaders in Harrisburg in addressing substance use and opioid addiction across the commonwealth.

The 361-member group, donned purple shirts and ribbons for the somber occasion, placing tributes to their lost loved ones on the Capitol steps.

State Rep. Tom Mehaffie, R-Dauphin, shared the story of his cousin, who died as a result of opioid addiction, reminding attendees that the effects of addictions are both close-to-home and far-reaching. Mehaffie asked the crowd of grieving onlookers what he could do to help.

In response, the group called for Gov. Tom Wolf to lower the flag in remembrance of those who have lost their lives to Pennsylvania’s ongoing opioid epidemic.

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“We need support from our leaders,” said Dr. Harold Einsig, a pain management specialist whose son Darion, died of an opioid overdose.

Monday, Einsig said, was Darion’s birthday. He would have been 26.

Einsig specializes in offering opioid-free pain management alternatives to his patients. A practice he has been doing for two decades, he said, calling on his colleagues to offer more alternatives.

Below is a gallery from the event.