Back to School Collection debuts, Planning Commission advances Riverside Alive, former Miss Riverside fights fentanyl crisis and meet Archie, adoptable pet of the week.
A retired nurse who started competing in beauty pageants at 60 turned personal tragedy into activism after her nephew died from a fentanyl-laced pill he believed was anxiety medication.
Shari Wolf received a local pageant title weeks before her 22-year-old nephew's death in March 2021. She has since used successive titles including Mrs. Portland and Miss Riverside to distribute naloxone and combat overdose stigma.
"I had just received a local title like weeks before my nephew passed away," Wolf said. "They say when you have something like this happen, my platform found me."
Her nephew died in San Diego after obtaining what his best friend described as anxiety medication during the pandemic. The case became one of the first drug-induced homicide prosecutions in the country.
"He thought he was getting an anti-anxiety drug, and it was fentanyl," Wolf said.
Riverside County recorded 98 fentanyl overdose deaths from December 2024 through April 2025, a 19-death increase from the previous reporting period. The 25-44 age group accounted for 189 deaths in 2024, the highest among all age groups.
Wolf traveled nationwide as Mrs. Portland, conducting over 2,000 conversations with families affected by the opioid crisis. She successfully lobbied to place naloxone in Oregon state schools and Portland bars.
"I thought it was really important to get naloxone into the bars in Portland, because there's basically a bar in every neighborhood," Wolf said.
In Riverside, Wolf is expanding harm reduction boxes throughout the Inland Empire. Only two currently exist — one in Palm Springs and one in Riverside — with plans for 20 more within a year.
The initiative will involve high school artists painting the boxes through scholarship competitions, combining community engagement with overdose prevention.
Wolf challenges stereotypes about drug users, noting the crisis affects diverse demographics.
"It's Eagle Scouts, college students that are doing very well. These are like our elite youth," she said.
The best friend who provided her nephew's fatal pill knew it contained fentanyl, Wolf said, but "the adolescent brain, the young adult brain is just not able to calculate the risk."
Wolf links addiction to social isolation, citing research showing loneliness affects large portions of the population with health impacts similar to smoking.
"The people that get involved with this are isolating," Wolf said. "They're making choices that they wouldn't normally make had they felt like they belonged."
Some politicians remain skeptical of overdose statistics. Wolf said one Riverside representative questioned numbers showing over 100,000 annual opioid deaths compared to 9,000 alcohol-related traffic fatalities.
California's naloxone distribution project has provided more than 6.2 million kits since 2018, reversing over 358,000 overdoses statewide. Inland Empire Harm Reduction distributed 26,112 naloxone doses in 2024 with 660 reported reversals.
Wolf continues advocacy through community events and CPR training, believing immediate action saves lives while government programs require years to implement.
More information: Readers who need help with substance use, want information about naloxone kits and training, or wish to donate can contact Inland Empire Harm Reduction at ieharmreduction.org.
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