LARRY BLACKFORD JR. WITH HIS MOTHER, NANCY BLACKFORD (Photo courtesy of Building Kentucky)
THE BLACKFORD FAMILY, pictured at the Luminary Ball, Isaiah House’s annual fundraising event, that was held in Lexington on Saturday, Oct. 25. The Isaiah House honored Nancy Blackford for her work in addiction recovery by naming one of its new programs, a pharmacy to underwrite the cost of medications used for detoxification and other diseases associated with addiction for its patients, in part, for her son Larry Blakford Jr., who died from a fentanyl overdose in 2017. From left, Dr. Rev. Eric French and Rev. Limberly Blackford French, the Blackford’s daughter and son-in-law, and Nancy and Larry Blackford. (Photo courtesy of the Isaiah House)
Nancy Blackford and her family, including her late son Larry G. Blackford Jr., husband Larry Blackford Sr. and daughter, Rev. Kimberly Blackford French, were honored at the Isaiah House’s annual Luminary Ball held on Saturday, Oct. 25, at the Embassy Suites in Lexington.A woman of deep faith, humility and a heart bursting with love, Nancy began her speech, unsurprisingly, with scripture quoting Psalm 34:1: “I will bless the Lord at all times; his praise shall continually be in my mouth.”However, Nancy did not immediately go on to extoll the goodness of the Lord. That came later The Isaiah House, founded in 1999 in Harrodsburg, Kentucky, is now Kentucky’s largest non-profit, Christ-centered addiction recovery organization that provides evidence-based, holistic care to individuals battling substance use disorders.
“With a heart for transforming lives, we serve individuals and families across the commonwealth through a full continuum of care, from residential treatment to outpatient services and recovery support,” according to its website.
The board of directors and senior management of Isaiah House used the Luminary Ball as a platform to announce a new initiative, the LBJ-Eadens Access Fund, named in honor of Larry Blackford Jr. (LBJ), who died of a fentanyl overdose in 2017, and another of its former patients, Jim “Allen” Eadens of Danville, Kentucky. “Nancy is more than a member of our board, but someone who has given her heart and passion to helping addicts find recovery through our Christ-based programs,” Kara Ball, Isaiah House’s chief Development & Communications officer. “We wanted to do something that leaves a positive legacy for her, her son Larry and her family.
Knowing Nancy’s giving heart, this was just a wonderful way to honor her legacy.”This program, which is funded by grants and gifts, will be a source for covering lifesaving prescriptions for patients who either cannot afford the medications or whose insurance company doesn’t pay. It has a formulary which includes medications for detoxification and diseases often associated with addiction, like chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), diabetes, mental health issues, high cholesterol and many others, but is not intended for any drugs with street value such as Suboxone. The goal of the program, Bell explained, is to remove financial barriers to life-saving medications so clients can focus fully on recovery and achieve lasting health.
The fund will be administered by Dr. Antonio Booker, the director of pharmacies, and will be headquartered at its main facility in Harrodsburg. It will be available to patients at all of their clinics.Nancy, whose faith informs all that she does, took some by surprise in her speech after quoting the psalmist. “Well, there was a moment on December 25 (2017), I didn’t have a praise in my mouth. This was the day that fentanyl killed my son,” she said. “I was knocked down. I questioned God. And I was angry, devastated and I needed to grab hold of something or I was going to sink.”Nancy was recalling the moment, nearly eight years ago, when Larry Jr. lost his courageous battle against the awful, destructive and deadly disease of opioid addiction.
At the time of his untimely passing, Larry Jr. was a graduate of Eastern Kentucky University, held a master’s degree from Morehead University, was employed in media technology by the Fayette County Public Schools and owned his own videography business. His passion was specializing in weddings and commercial advertising production. Nancy said he was an accomplished drummer in bands and played at many churches and venues in Kentucky. He hardly fit the stereotype of an addict – educated, with a career and a loving family.
He was a remarkable young man, already accomplished, with an extraordinarily bright future. But for reasons no one can ever really know, Larry Jr. fell into addiction. And though he received support from his parents and sister, friends, and found a long period of recovery through the Isaiah House programs and ongoing recovery support systems, he ultimately lost his battle with addiction, and Nancy was adrift. “I was knocked down,” she said. “But the Holy Spirit revealed a truth to me, asking, ‘Do I believe God is good only in the good times, or do I truly believe God is good all the time?’” Nancy was able to open her heart to God’s movement. “So, in this way, God’s amazing grace let me know about being grateful, I had LBJ for 30 years, and I could have lost him at 3,” she said. “I learned being grateful for the blessings you have can lift you up! So, I stand here, humble, because I’m a witness that God’s grace is so amazing. Through God’s grace, my pain has been turned into purpose. I know God loves us all.”From this pivotal moment in the months after Larry Jr’s death, Nancy became laser-focused on the work needed to be done in the field of opioid addiction, and how critical it is to tear down the barriers to recovery. She shared that Larry Jr’s biggest fear was going through detox . . . what can seem like an insurmountable wall for many. This is a barrier Nancy says she is always focused on, and finding ways to help addicts surmount it. “Brian Privett (Isaiah House’s general counsel and director of legal affairs) knows the long journey of me with Isaiah House, and that my first priority is to help remove the barrier of being afraid to detox,” she said. “I wanted to help Isaiah House to have the medicine, the nurses right there in place, and to help with sober-living assistance.” The LBJ-Eadens Access Fund will help make sure that detoxification medications, necessary for many opioid addicts starting recovery, are available to all with no cost concerns.As Ball pointed out, Nancy has had a major impact on the recovery community. In addition to serving as an Isaiah House board member, she was on the first board of Woodford County’s Agency for Substance Abuse Policy (ASAP0 and now serves as its coordinator; she founded Bridge the Gap Woodford County whose goal is to extend employment prospects for people in recovery from addiction in the community by removing barriers and expanding opportunities; and she administers the Larry G. Blackford Jr. Memorial Scholarship Fund, which is open to any Woodford or Fayette County student seeking to pursue a career in media or music.
Nancy’s firm voice and message, though laden with emotion at times, kept the large crowd in rapt silence. “I came across a quote that said, one of the purest forms of love is consideration. When someone thinks about how things make you feel, it shows how much they care about you. How much they care about you is found in how much they consider you. This describes my son and this describes Isaiah House,” she said. “To know Larry Blackford Jr. is to love him. He was so full of life, hope and love for others all through his life . . . he always considered others, how he could help others more than he helped himself. I constantly get people telling me stories (about) how Larry Jr. helped them, helped pay for their medicine, which led to the Isaiah House’s idea for this fund. This is what Isaiah House does; they make people free and whole again, they consider their patients.”