Trey Helten, advocate for drug users in Vancouver, dead at 42

Michelle Gomez · CBC News

· Posted: Apr 24, 2025 5:06 PM EDT | Last Updated: 3 minutes ago

Trey Helten, a salient advocator for cause users and those experiencing homelessness successful Vancouver's Downtown Eastside, has died astatine the property of 42, according to friends and colleagues. 

Sarah Blyth, a person of Helten's and the enforcement manager of the Overdose Prevention Society (OPS), wherever helium worked, said his beingness ngo was to assistance people. 

"There was truly nary 1 similar him and I don't deliberation determination volition ever beryllium different idiosyncratic similar him," Blyth said Thursday greeting connected CBC's The Early Edition. 

She said Helten started moving with the OPS successful 2017 arsenic a unpaid and worked his mode up the organization, yet becoming the wide manager of the overdose prevention site. 

"He came successful and conscionable said, 'I privation to beryllium portion of the solution, I privation to assistance people,'" said Blyth. 

Helten went supra and beyond to assistance those struggling astir him, said Blyth, driving radical places, visiting radical astatine the hospital, and adjacent lodging and feeding radical successful his ain home. 

"Coming from the position of a idiosyncratic with lived experience, who had astatine 1 constituent been stateless and had astatine 1 constituent been a cause user, helium came with a batch of empathy and understanding," she said. 

Helten would big Narcotics Anonymous meetings often, according to Blyth, who said the gatherings grew successful attendance. 

She said she hopes helium volition beryllium an inspiration to people, especially those who are struggling with addiction:

"I deliberation helium would conscionable say, 'Keep trying.'"

Advocacy work

Deb Bailey, subordinate of Moms Stop the Harm, said Helten fought for causes helium believed in, often speaking connected proposals astatine metropolis hallway and advocating to officials connected behalf of those struggling with addiction.

"His resoluteness and spot was truly rather amazing," said Bailey. 

She said Helten was approachable and ever consenting to help, often moving with members of Moms Stop the Harm erstwhile it was needed. 

He would besides bash NARCAN demonstrations astatine Adler University, wherever she was a professor. 

"I consciousness truly devastated by his nonaccomplishment and it's benignant of hard to judge it," Bailey said. 

"He was an inspiration to a batch of people."