On Saturday, April 26th, the Drug Enforcement Administration hosted their 27th bi-annual National Prescription Drug Take Back Day. Makin’ It Happen brought manpower to help collect as much medication as possible – with the help of a few staff members and youth volunteers!
Twice a year, in April and October, the DEA hosts this event with the goal of encouraging people to remove any unneeded medications from their homes to prevent medication misuse and opioid addiction from developing. Prescription drugs are often misused due to increased availability and easy access to a variety of unused medications in the home, and can lead to substance use disorder. Makin’ It Happen helps to support and promote this initiative and are proud to partner with the DEA, Manchester Police Department, Hooksett Police Department, and Elliot Hospital to achieve this goal.
Makin’ It Happen staff and youth volunteers were present at the Manchester and Hooksett locations, dispersing prevention tools and information to attendees in “swag bags”. These bags included DeTerra Deactivation & Disposal System bags, local prevention trainings and events, and over-the-counter medicine safety materials – because prevention isn’t just a one-day event, it’s something we can incorporate into our everyday lives! Even better, our Manchester location staff ran out of swag bags 1.5 hours into the day, because they were so popular!
This April, the Greater Manchester region collected 928.3 pounds of medications in one day. Here’s the breakdown of what each town in our region collected:
| Town | Boxes | Pounds Collected |
| Auburn | 4 boxes | 108.4 lbs |
| Bedford | 6 boxes | 123.9 lbs |
| Candia | 3 boxes | 64.9 lbs |
| Deerfield | 2 boxes | 35.1 lbs |
| Goffstown | 8 boxes | 179 lbs |
| Hooksett | 5 boxes | 110.9 lbs |
| Manchester | 13 boxes | 249.9 lbs |
| Manchester VA | 1 box | 14.2 lbs |
If you were unable to drop off your unused medications for disposal on April 26th, no worries – New Hampshire has implemented permanent medication Drop Box locations throughout the state at participating local police stations. Check here to see the closest Drop Box location to you: https://www.dhhs.nh.gov/sites/g/files/ehbemt476/files/documents/2021-11/bdas-drop-box-locations.pdf.
If you would like DeTerra bags for your personal use, please reach out to us to pick up by emailing: [email protected].
Written by Janelle Havens | Recovery Ready Communities Director | 4/23/2025
