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Date: 7/5/2023
MONSON — On July 8, Achieve Greatness will host its first annual Fundraiser at the River Hollow Family Golf Center in Monson from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. It will be a day for families to play mini golf, hit golf balls at the driving range, enjoy food and ice cream and win raffle prizes.
President Paula Santos Young said, “We are doing the fundraiser, because Ludlow is my hometown, to bring forth awareness of the fentanyl crisis that is affecting every state and community in the United States, while also creating sponsorships and or scholarships for young adults to be able to participate in basketball camps throughout Ludlow and the surrounding communities.”
Achieve Greatness is a nonprofit, community-based organization founded in the memory of Young’s son Andrew J. Ganhao, who died from unknown fentanyl poisoning in March 2022.
Ganhao was a basketball coach, teaching children of all ages from elementary, high school to college level in basketball skills assessment. He created Achieve Greatness three years ago, where he mentored youth through basketball.
“Andrew was infectious,” Young said. “He would walk into a room and all eyes were on him. He was someone who never had anyone who said any ill-will against him. When he cared about something, he cared about it passionately. He was my first born and such a good-hearted soul who unfortunately was taken from me.”
Achieve Greatness was Ganhao’s dream and vision. Upon his unexpected death, Young and her husband wanted to continue his legacy while educating and aiding in the awareness of the fentanyl crisis.
Ganhao was diagnosed with PTSD and anxiety due to a severe car accident he was in and had a medical marijuana card. He received marijuana from a friend, and did not know it was laced with fentanyl. He died at the age of 33.
In his memory, Young has continued Achieve Greatness, building it into a nonprofit organization and bringing forth mentorship to kids through education. They are creating a Google platform with their director of IT, and will be in many of the school systems in September all across Massachusetts talking about the dangers of all drugs including the current crisis of the fentanyl/xylazine epidemic. The organization hopes to help children make good choices.
Young said, “According to the [Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Drug Enforcement Agency] statistics, we are currently losing almost 300 people a day to fentanyl poisoning.”
She continued, “This is not an overdose, it’s a poisoning. When you’re given something that you have no knowledge of, that is poisoning. Three hundred a day – that’s equivalent to a 747-plane crashing every single day and unfortunately you barely hearing nothing about it.”
Regarding the event, Young shared, “River Hollow Family Golf Center wanted to partner with us once they heard our story from Manny and Lisa Pedro, who are also Achieve Greatness Inc. treasurer and secretary, including my family. Manny and Lisa facilitated this event from the beginning, and River Hollow Family Golf Center jumped on board wanting to be able to help and really be the first ones to say that we are behind you 100%, while helping a great cause. It’s for the kids and to save lives.”
To Young, this is about her son’s legacy.
“Andrew’s legacy will not be how he passed away, but by how many lives he’s about to save,” she said. “My husband’s and my mission now is what Andrew wanted. We have phenomenal people who are standing beside us to follow through bringing forth Andrew’s legacy of the basketball camps/scholarships while also and saving lives.”
To learn more about Achieve Greatness, visit their website at www.achievegreatness88.org.