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Date: 10/5/2021
AGAWAM/WEST SPRINGFIELD – Mike Tourville, an Agawam resident and twice published author released his second book in January. The book, titled “Voices from the Fallen. True stories of Addiction, Grief, Recovery and Courage,” covers a variety of perspectives from people affected both directly and indirectly by opioids.
Tourville shared that the opioid epidemic has impacted more people in the area than most are aware of. According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, “In 2019, nearly 50,000 people in the United States died from opioid-involved overdoses.”
The inspiration for the ‘Voices from the Fallen’ book stemmed from Tourville’s lifelong friendship with Kirk Jonah, a West Springfield resident and father who lost his son Jack at the age of 19, to an accidental opioid overdose. Jack’s tragedy was turned into a film that captured his life and how his family was unaware of his drug use. The Jack Jonah film was recorded in Agawam, West Springfield and Springfield, and was released in the summer of 2019. Following the movie’s release, Tourville asked Kirk Jonah if they should write a booklet to share other people’s stories as well.
“With my book, [I talk about] eight true stories about going through addiction. They are all very different stories,” said Tourville. “I interviewed 40 or so plus people and [realized] a lot of people want their stories told.”
He continued, “I was blown away at how many people [have been] affected. Stories are told from the first person – it’s more relatable and I wanted it to hit home.” To differ from all the other addiction books out there, Tourville thought that sharing from different perspectives would make his book stand out. He even included the perspective of clinicians and asked thought-provoking questions to leave readers thinking.
Rather than writing another book, Tourville created a website called https://www.healingvoicesproject.com/ to serve as a platform for people to share their stories. “They’re inspiring and you can learn from them.” He added that it allows people to know that they’re not alone.
With the desire to create something more “interactive,” Tourville decided that he wanted to begin a podcast. The podcast is called, ‘Healing Voices Project. Sharing stories of Addiction, Grief, Recovery and Courage.’ “This will include more local people – not just people with stories to share,” he explained. For instance, Tourville will speak with experts on the topic, politicians, the police chief, councilors and families of those who have been impacted.
“People [often] have a story and don’t know where to start,” said Tourville. He is hopeful that his podcast will give people an opportunity to do so.
After sharing his idea with others, Tourville received a lot of great feedback on beginning a podcast. Tourville said Mayor William Sapelli is behind this and wants to be a guest on the podcast, along with state Sen. John Velis. Kirk Jonah will also be a guest speaker on the podcast, along with eight others lined up to kick it off.
“This is a community thing. It affects everyone,” claimed Tourville. “A lot of people I’ve spoken with have been through or know someone [who's been through it] and [they] don’t know what to do.”
Tourville plans to begin recording his podcasts in the beginning of October, with the first public broadcast to be released on Oct. 15. Every few weeks he plans to release a new episode. He will record them all ahead of time, rather than live.
Recently, Tourville shared that he was speaking to a friend who lost her son to the opioid crisis. To honor those who tragically lost their lives, he will be dedicating each episode to one of the fallen. In addition, Tourville will ask listeners if they want to donate to an organization that the person admired.
Although about 60 percent of the focus will be on opioids, there will be some other topics as well.
Tourville hopes his podcast will be successful and inspiring to others. He wants people to come forward and share their stories - no matter what it may be. The podcast will be available online at https://www.healingvoicesproject.com/, along with YouTube, Spotify and iTunes. The podcast will also have a video aspect which can be viewed on the same website or on YouTube. Tourville’s book can be found at https://voicesfromthefallen.com.