International Overdose Awareness Day is observed to remember all who have lost their lives to substance abuse disorder.

The day is the world's largest campaign to end overdose and acknowledge the grief and pain of those they left behind.

Sister station WBAL spoke with a mother who lost her daughter in July 2020.

"My daughter was the most beautiful, outgoing smart person," Michele Applegate said.

Applegate said those smarts led to a college scholarship in 2011. Once there, Abigail Thompson's struggle with drugs began.

"She was very popular, started hanging around with other affluent popular kids and started using cocaine, LSD, mushrooms," Applegate said.

That began a 10-year battle with addiction. Thompson was in 17 recovery programs. Applegate said she went into debt paying more than $100,000 trying to help her daughter recover. Thompson's longest period of sobriety was 18 months.

Applegate said in the summer of 2020, Thompson was back in treatment.

"Unfortunately, she met someone in treatment that had just been admitted that had drugs, they used at the program, the program discharged both of them," she said.

Thompson would later overdose on fentanyl and die. She was 27.

Dr. Kenneth Stoller, director of the Johns Hopkins Broadway Center for Addiction, said the pandemic fueled the rise of overdose deaths.

"People are alone more if they are using alone, there's not people there to call 911 or to use Narcan to revive them. This is a 'I carry this at all times,' this is a lifesaving medication that everybody should be carrying so that if somebody overdoses, they can be revived right away," Stoller said.

On awareness day, Applegate wants people to know: "If you're involved with someone who has a substance abuse disorder, don't give up on them. If they are breathing, there is hope for them to get recovery. Get help for yourself so you can support loved ones, don't give up. Always keep that connection there so when they are ready for help, you are able to support them."

'I'd rather lose my business than my life': Maryland cafe owner explains proof of vaccination policy

Updated: 5:44 PM EDT Aug 15, 2021

A Baltimore restaurant is taking the city's indoor mask mandate one step further and is requiring customers to bring proof of COVID-19 vaccination in order to enter. The policy is plastered on the front door of Silver Queen Cafe — customers ages 12 and up only get in if they have proof they're fully vaccinated.Jason Daniloski, the co-owner of Silver Queen Cafe, said he rather potentially lose his business than lose a life. Daniloski put the new policy in place last week Friday."We just kind of took the plunge. It's a little awkward. I used to be a doorman a long time ago, so it almost feels like you're in the club again checking IDs when you come in," he said.Customers who refuse to show proof or wear a mask indoors will have to wait outside to pick up food or dine at tables out front."Customers have been very supportive, and it was scary because we do need every cent. It's a scary time when you need every cent, and to make up for lost revenue from last year," Daniloski said.Currently, Baltimore City is under a reinstated indoor mask mandate, as COVID-19 cases continue to rise. So far, the city's positivity rate sits at 2.6% while Baltimore has seen a 439% rise in cases within the last four weeks.Daniloski is taking a stance, trying to keep the COVID-19 numbers down, even if it means putting safety over profit."It was just a risk we had to take. I mean, I'd rather lose my business than my life, or my family's life, or anybody else's life," Daniloski said.The owners said the policy will remain in place until cases begin to drop.

One of the United State's best Paralympians is calling for change.

Marylander Becca Meyers, 26, is not going to Tokyo to compete due to a decision she said would put her safety in jeopardy.

Becca Meyers and her mother, Maria Meyers, spoke to sister station WBAL-TV Wednesday about the devastating decision and what they hope comes next.

Meyers is one of the most decorated American swimmers in history. She's won six Paralympic medals, three of them gold. She put in countless hours at the pool training for the 2021 games.

But she will not represent team USA this year – she withdrew – and she did so because of safety concerns, but none that has anything to do with the coronavirus.

"They took away a part of me. A part of who I am. I’ve always been Rebecca, the swimmer, and now I feel less than that," Becca Meyers said.

The United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee denied the Meyers' request to have a personal care assistant accompany her to the Tokyo Games.

"So, when they said 'No,' it just broke me. It made me feel, 'wow, the one place I had where I could excel as someone with multiple disabilities was taken away,' made me feel worthless," Becca Meyers said.

Becca Meyers explained her communication with the USOPC in recent years.

"It's been a really tough couple of months communicating with the USOPC expressing my needs as a deaf, blind athlete. We've had an understanding for the last couple of years since 2017 that I need a dedicated personal care assistant to come with me because of my disabilities. Because I [have] two sensorial disabilities, not just one. So, I really need that one-on-one care, orienting me to new places, traveling with me every step of the way so that I get to my destinations safely, that I get the proper meals. That was the purpose of having a PCA of whom I trust," she said.

Becca Meyers has suffered from Usher Syndrome since birth, leaving her deaf and with degenerative sight. Essentially, she can only see through a pinhole, straight ahead. So, having a PCA on hand is critical. She learned this the hard way, when alone at the 2016 Rio Games.

Related video: Tokyo Olympics Brings Hope for Change For Deaf Transgender Athlete

"I remember one night a couple, two days before a competition started just crying uncontrollably on the floor in my room. I felt so lost, so paralyzed in a way that I knew I couldn’t do this on my own. I’m a deaf, blind person. And I think that moment is when I came to terms with my disabilities," Becca Meyers said.

Becca's mother Maria has served as her PCA since 2017 as she is trained in the care of a deaf/blind person. When the USOPC refused to allow her to travel to Tokyo, the family decided they needed to be heard.

"It's not just for my kid, you know, this is for all of them. The culture has to change we can do better. We know we can do better," Maria Meyers said.

The USOPC will have one PCA on hand for the entire Paraswimming team in Tokyo.

"And then it turns out that the team was named and there’s nine blind swimmers. Nine out of 34. This is the biggest team of line swimmers they’ve ever taken. Not one is trained in orientation and mobility of the blind," Maria Meyers said. "She's not sitting at home and saying 'I only want green M&Ms.' This is not a diva moment."

Becca Meyers received support from Maryland's two U.S. senators and Gov. Larry Hogan. The outrage is widespread at denying a world class swimmer a safe way to represent the country, which she has done so well.

"I'm not going away quietly. This needs to change. The culture needs to change. I need to stand up to protect future generations from ever getting hurt or feeling scared to be a part of team USA," Becca Meyers said.

WBAL-TV reached out to the USOPC but received no comment on Becca Meyers' withdrawal from the games.