Hundreds gathered Sunday for the 3rd Annual Soles Walking 4 Souls event at Brooks City-Base, marking what officials called the largest turnout yet for a fentanyl awareness walk that has become increasingly significant amid Texas’s ongoing battle with opioid deaths.
The October 12 event, which took place along The Greenline in San Antonio, drew not only affected families but also top government officials, including Texas Governor Greg Abbott and newly elected San Antonio Mayor Gina Ortiz Jones, both of whom addressed the crowd during live-broadcast speeches.
A Mother’s Mission
Behind the growing event are the “Angel Moms” — women who have lost children to fentanyl poisoning and transformed grief into action. “I would have not dreamed in one million years that this would have happened to my kid. That’s why I do what I do because it is so unbelievable,” said Kim Gillihan, whose 14-year-old son died from fentanyl poisoning, as she told local media.
The timing couldn’t be more intentional. October has been officially proclaimed as Fentanyl Awareness Month in Texas following Governor Abbott’s signing of House Bill 3144 in 2023, giving additional weight to what began as a grassroots memorial walk.
What started as a solemn remembrance has evolved into something larger: part memorial, part resource fair, and part public health intervention. Organizers distributed free Narcan — the emergency medication that can reverse opioid overdoses — to attendees, reflecting a shift toward practical harm reduction alongside awareness efforts.
Signs of Progress
Perhaps the most encouraging news shared during the event was Texas’s dramatic turnaround in fentanyl-related deaths. After reaching grim record highs in 2023, the state has witnessed more than a 40% drop in fatalities, though officials cautioned that the crisis is far from over.
Is this the beginning of a sustainable downward trend? Officials seemed cautiously optimistic but stressed that community awareness events like Soles Walking 4 Souls remain crucial to maintaining momentum.
The event has grown substantially since its inception, with this year’s hundreds of participants making it the largest turnout to date. Many walked in memory of loved ones, carrying photos and wearing custom t-shirts bearing the names and faces of those lost to fentanyl.
SW4S Angel Moms, who host the annual walk, have created what many participants described as both a healing space for grieving families and an educational platform for the wider community. Their dual mission — honoring the dead while potentially saving lives through awareness — has resonated deeply in a state hit hard by the synthetic opioid crisis.
“Every pair of shoes walking today represents both a memory and a message,” said one volunteer coordinator, gesturing toward the crowd moving along The Greenline. “The memory of those we’ve lost, and the message that no other family should have to join our ranks.”
