Three Florida mothers are standing up to educate the public about the dangers of fentanyl after losing their children to the deadly drug.
Rhonda Willis lost her 27-year-old son Zachary Willis in 2022.
“The toxicologist came back with Oxy with fentanyl, and he had enough fentanyl in his system to kill 20 people,” she said. Said Tampa News Channel 8.
The heartbroken mother said it was “a parent’s worst nightmare” to know that she would “never be able to hug him again, hold him, tell him I love him or hear his voice again”.
More than 3,000 people died from fentanyl poisoning in Florida from January to June 2022. Florida Department of Law Enforcement found.
St. Petersburg had the highest number of deaths due to fentanyl, with 374 people.
Film crews have recently documented tragedies around Tampa, which ranks fourth in fentanyl deaths with 267.
Heidi Kettles was just 27 years old when she died in 2020 after using powerful opioids.
“She passed away in the middle of the night. It was fentanyl and cocaine,” said her mother, Julie Kettles.
Tammy Praxtis also lost her son Dylan Praxtis in 2020.
“They gave him Narcan three times and were able to see a heartbeat, but in the end he was brain dead,” she told local media.
The three mothers didn’t know each other before their interviews, but their losses and newfound activism unite them in one mission: to save lives.
“My grief, my pain will never end,” Kettles said. “Does it feel any better? Yes. I’m also a grief support group leader, so helping others and fulfilling that mission helps me.”
Grieving mothers are joining various groups, putting up signs and speaking at public events.
“The more awareness we can get out there, the more lives we can save,” Willis said.
“The goal is to prevent other parents from going through what I went through. It’s a very difficult road,” she added.
Praxtis said he is working with anti-drug groups. rachel’s angels This includes installing awareness signs and distributing Narcan.
“If this awareness saves just one life, my son didn’t have to die in vain,” Willis added.
