Houston Daily

Governor Greg Abbott participated in the 3rd Annual "Soles 4 Souls" Fentanyl Awareness Walk in San Antonio, recognizing families and community members for their efforts to address the fentanyl crisis.

"We will continue to grow this movement until we purge fentanyl forever in the United States of America," Governor Abbott said. "There's an unfortunate fact that we all must understand—there's more work to be done. All I can ask is that you take the message you learned today and expand it tenfold around San Antonio, around Texas, making our city and our state an ever safer place."

The event included several local officials and advocates such as San Antonio Mayor Gina Ortiz-Jones, "Soles Walking 4 Souls" Directors Kathy Drago and Christina Villagrana, Bexar County Sheriff Javier Salazar, San Antonio Police Department Chief William McManus, KSAT-TV News Anchor Courtney Friedman, and other supporters of fentanyl poisoning awareness.

In 2023, House Bill 3144 was signed into law by Governor Abbott after being passed by the Texas Legislature. Since then, October has been designated as Fentanyl Poisoning Awareness Month in Texas. Additionally, Governor Abbott issued a proclamation naming October 12-18, 2025 as Fentanyl Poisoning Awareness Week to educate children about the dangers of fentanyl.

Earlier this year, Governor Abbott announced a new online interactive map from the Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS). The tool helps Texans find locations where they can obtain Naloxone (NARCAN), either for free or purchase it over-the-counter. This initiative is part of the statewide “One Pill Kills” campaign aimed at preventing fentanyl poisonings.

According to data released by DSHS on its fentanyl data dashboard, deaths from fentanyl poisoning in Texas dropped by more than 42% between July 2024 and June 2025 compared with the previous year. This decline follows five years of increases during which fentanyl-related deaths rose over 600% from 2019 to 2023, resulting in more than 7,000 fatalities statewide.

Additional photos from the event are available online.