Leadership Insights: Turning Up the Volume on an Overlooked Crisis
By: Kyle Henderson, Executive Director of the Sandgaard Foundation
Across the United States, the opioid epidemic continues to evolve in ways that are both heartbreaking and urgent. Every day, families lose loved ones, communities struggle to keep pace with rising overdose deaths, and frontline workers do everything they can with limited resources. Yet for all the attention this crisis receives, far too many people still feel isolated in their pain, ashamed to speak openly about addiction, or unsure where to turn for support.
At The Sandgaard Foundation, we believe this silence is one of the most dangerous parts of the epidemic. Ending it requires more than medication, treatment beds, or policy change. It requires a fundamental shift in how we talk about pain, addiction, and recovery. That is why our mission is centered on creating non-traditional coalitions, elevating unheard voices, and amplifying initiatives that save lives right now.
A Crisis That Requires Courage and Collaboration
The epidemic did not begin overnight, and it will not end through the efforts of one organization or one sector. It demands leadership rooted in empathy, innovation, and relentless action.
From the beginning, founder Thomas Sandgaard envisioned a foundation that would operate differently — one willing to challenge outdated narratives, break down silos, and support bold ideas that reach the people who need help most.
Today, that vision has grown into a national network of partners, clinicians, researchers, advocates, families, and community leaders who are aligned around a shared purpose: decreasing habitual use of prescription pain medication, preventing addiction, supporting recovery, and lifting up the victims left behind.
Changing the Conversation Around Pain and Addiction
Stigma remains one of the biggest barriers to progress. Too many people feel they must hide their struggle. Too many families carry their grief privately. Too many patients are left without options that treat pain safely and effectively.
This is why we are committed to turning up the volume:
Bringing conversations about addiction and overdose out of the shadows.
Supporting storytelling and media that humanize — not shame — the people affected.
Encouraging healthcare providers to rethink pain management approaches.
Uplifting communities that are redefining recovery and building hope.
Every life saved is proof that compassion and innovation work.
Supporting the Work That Saves Lives Today
Through strategic partnerships and grantmaking, the Foundation supports programs across the country that expand access to lifesaving tools, reshape public dialogue, and empower communities to respond with urgency and care.
Current and past collaborators include:
Yale University Program in Addiction Medicine
Naloxone Project
Voices Project
Junction Film
Gibson Guitar Foundation
Mobilize Recovery
TEMPO (Training and Empowering Musicians to Prevent Overdose)
These partnerships reflect our belief that solutions come from everywhere — from world-class researchers to grassroots recovery advocates, musicians, filmmakers, innovators, and people with lived experience.
We intentionally seek out non-traditional alliances because the epidemic touches every sector of society. Effective solutions must do the same.
Why We Lead This Work
We are driven by a simple truth: No one should lose their life because they didn’t have access to support, understanding, or a path forward.
Leadership means raising our voices when others stay quiet. It means investing in early ideas, community-rooted initiatives, and evidence-based approaches that shift outcomes in measurable ways. It means standing with families and survivors who carry the weight of this crisis every day.
Most importantly, leadership means refusing to accept the status quo.
The Sandgaard Foundation was built to push boundaries, to challenge stigma, and to accelerate the kind of change that saves lives.
Looking Forward
As the epidemic evolves — from fentanyl to emerging synthetics like nitazenes — our work must evolve with it. The next chapter requires even stronger coalitions, more open dialogue, and a national commitment to meet people where they are with care, dignity, and practical support.
We will continue to invest in those on the front lines, elevate the voices of people most impacted, and help communities build systems of hope that last.
Because when we speak openly, collaborate relentlessly, and put people first, change becomes possible.
It’s time to turn up the volume. Lives depend on it.
Where We Stand Now: A Snapshot of the Opioid Crisis in 2025
By Thomas Sandgaard, Founder of The Sandgaard Foundation
Over the past two decades, the opioid crisis has carved deep scars across our communities—claiming lives, devastating families, and burdening our health systems. As Founder of the Sandgaard Foundation, I believe it is essential we regularly take stock: to see what progress we’ve made, what dangers still loom, and where we must direct our efforts next.
The State of the Crisis: What the Numbers Tell Us
Declines, but still alarmingly high death tolls
Recent data shows some hopeful movement. The United States has seen a significant drop in drug overdose deaths from 2023 to 2024. Overdoses dropped by nearly 24% in the 12 months ending September 2024 compared to the prior year. In 2024, total overdose deaths are estimated at about 80,000, down from over 110,000 in 2023. Opioid-involved deaths also declined, with synthetic opioids (like fentanyl) seeing a near 37% drop.While these drops are encouraging, “low” is a relative word: tens of thousands are still dying each year, and many communities remain deeply affected.
Opioids are still overwhelmingly central
Approximately 75–80% of overdose deaths continue to involve opioids, whether prescription, heroin, or synthetic. Synthetic opioids, especially fentanyl and its analogues, remain the most lethal and prevalent threat.Emerging threats & shifting dynamics
The landscape keeps changing:More potent synthetic opioids are emerging in the illicit drug supply, sometimes in forms that mimic prescription pills.
Overdose deaths among older adults are rising sharply.
Social and structural factors—poverty, social isolation, access to treatment, and mental health services—continue to amplify risk.
Where progress is happening — and what’s enabling it
Several interventions are showing promise:Wider distribution and usage of naloxone, the overdose reversal drug, has saved countless lives.
Expanding availability of treatment programs and medication for opioid use disorder is helping more people recover.
Settlement funds and public health policies have begun to shift focus toward prevention, treatment, and recovery rather than punishment alone.
Challenges That Remain
Despite encouraging signs, the battle is far from over. Several serious threats could stall or reverse recent progress:
More potent, less predictable synthetic opioids continue to enter the illicit supply, often without users knowing what they are taking.
Access to treatment is still far too uneven. Many people who need help cannot get it due to insurance gaps, geography, stigma, or lack of resources.
Social determinants and inequities such as poverty and underfunded health systems drive higher risks in vulnerable communities.
The risk of complacency is real. When numbers improve, urgency often wanes, but funding and attention must remain consistent.
Where the Sandgaard Foundation Stands & What We’re Doing
At the Sandgaard Foundation, our mission has always been to band together to end the opioid epidemic by:
Reducing the habitual use of prescription pain medication.
Preventing addiction and supporting those with opioid or other substance use disorders.
Supporting victims and their families—because no one facing this crisis is just a statistic.
Some of the work we are doing includes:
Funding non-traditional coalitions that reshape how we think and talk about pain, addiction, shame, and recovery.
Supporting recovery organizations and housing, giving people in recovery stable foundations to rebuild their lives.
Promoting awareness and education to fight stigma and isolation that too often keep people from seeking help.
What Must Come Next — A Call to Action
To sustain and deepen progress, we must commit to the following:
Invest in prevention upstream. Address overprescription, ensure alternatives for pain management, and tackle social determinants before they lead to addiction.
Expand access to proven treatments. Make medication-assisted treatment widely available, with long-term support rather than short-term fixes.
Scale up harm reduction. Naloxone access, drug testing tools, and safe use education must be normalized.
Strengthen policies and funding with accountability. Settlement dollars and public health budgets must go to real, measurable community solutions.
Open the conversation and fight stigma. Addiction is not a moral failing. We must amplify recovery stories and treat people with compassion.
Hope, But with Vigilance
The recent declines in overdose deaths provide us with hard-won hope—hope that our collective efforts are making a difference. But hope without vigilance is fragile. The shifting nature of the crisis means that what worked yesterday may not fully work tomorrow.
At the Sandgaard Foundation, we are committed to keeping the pressure on, the support growing, and the compassion rising. Because behind every statistic is a human being, a family, a story.
We can, and must, do better.
Sincerely,
Thomas Sandgaard
Founder, Sandgaard Foundation