End Heroin Walk moves from downtown to Veterans Park

The End Heroin Walk for the Birmingham-Hoover metro area is moving from Birmingham’s Railroad Park to Hoover’s Veterans Park.

This is the fourth year for the walk, which is scheduled for Feb. 29 at 11 a.m., with registration beginning at 10 a.m. People are invited to come show support for those who have struggled with addiction and to help raise money for awareness, prevention and recovery.

Participants can walk the loop trail around the 1-acre pond at Veterans Park. There will also be music, a drum circle, kids’ activities and resource tables set up by groups that provide addiction treatment, recovery and grief support services, said Jennifer Campbell, who is serving as marketing coordinator for the walk. There were 29 resource tables at last year’s walk.

Organizers also plan to hand out 350 Narcan kits, which are used to reverse the effects of an opioid overdose, said Mike Vest, executive director of the Addiction Prevention Coalition, which organizes the walk. The coalition has given out about 1,000 of the kits over the past three years, Vest said.

In 2017, the first year the walk was held in Birmingham, about 3,000 people showed up, Vest said. In 2018, about 4,000 people came, and last year, there were about 3,500, he said. This year, he’s hoping for 5,000.

Organizers decided to move the walk to Hoover this year just to switch things up a little bit, Vest said. Plus, there was a problem of not enough parking at Railroad Park, he said. “We’re trying to make it convenient for everyone involved.”

Sponsors of the walk include Southwest Water, Pathways, ARC Realty, Kopri Promotions and Double Oak Community Church, but more are being sought.

The cost to register for the walk is $25 for those who want a T-shirt and lanyard credential. Others are welcome to walk for free. Money raised from the event is used to pay for treatment for people who can’t afford it and to support drug prevention and awareness programs.

This year’s ambassador for the walk is ABC 33/40 meteorologist James Spann, and the master of ceremonies is Rob Conrad of the Magic 96.5 radio station.