KENTUCKY (WOWK) – Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear has ordered all flags at state office buildings to be lowered to half-staff Thursday, Aug. 31 in honor of Overdose Awareness Day in the Bluegrass State.

Also to honor the day, the governor’s mansion in Frankfort has been lit purple to spread awareness. The global event takes place every year on Aug. 31, according to the governor’s office.

The goal is to reduce stigma of drug-related deaths and remember the lives lost from it, as well as acknowledge the grief of family and friends who have lost a loved one to overdose or had a loved one permanently injured by a drug overdose.