'It's a poison': After daughter's death in Springfield, woman speaks out about fentanyl

Christina Maliszewski has paid to put up billboards across America in the past year, with her 100th billboard on Campbell Avenue in Springfield.

Its location has special significance: Two years ago, Maliszewski's 21-year-old daughter, Leona Swinney, died from ingesting fentanyl in Springfield, and Maliszewski has been trying to raise awareness since then with her organization, Leona's Legacy of Love.

The majority of the faces on the Springfield billboard are from the Ozarks, with a few from other areas, according to Maliszewski. Starting at 4 p.m. Friday, people will gather in the Incredible Pizza parking lot, 2850 S. Campbell Ave., to share stories, distribute Narcan, release balloons and light candles in honor of those whose lives were cut short by fentanyl.

The billboard will be up until Sept. 15 and Maliszewski plans to run it again in October at the same spot.

Fentanyl is a powerful synthetic opioid that the United States Food and Drug Administration has approved for use as pain relief or anesthetic. According to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency , fentanyl is about 100 times more potent than morphine and 50 times more potent than heroin for pain relief.

In Greene County, a combination of methamphetamine and fentanyl is proving to be increasingly deadly. In 2021, 57 overdose deaths were from a combination of meth and fentanyl, 46 from fentanyl and 42 from meth, according to the Greene County Medical Examiner's Office .

Mother carries on her daughter's legacy

Swinney, a lifelong animal lover who poured herself into caring for abandoned and homeless animals, grew up in Odessa, Texas. Maliszewski described her daughter as a straight-A student who was impeccably organized, kind and giving, and known in Odessa for helping animals. In 2022, Swinney moved to Springfield with the hope of starting her own animal rescue.

Maliszewski said that she and Swinney's brothers planned to follow her to Springfield, but tragedy struck too soon. One weekend in April, Maliszewski wasn't able to reach Swinney on the phone. After calling in a welfare check, police officers found Swinney dead in her bedroom.

"That was April 23, 2022 — that was when I lost her. I made a promise that I was going to carry on her legacy in any way I knew how," Maliszewski said.

Cindy DeMaio of Rachael's Angels , a nonprofit that works to increase awareness and education around fentanyl, reached out to Maliszewski last year. DeMaio, who lost her 17-year-old daughter Rachael to fentanyl, "built an everlasting friendship" with Maliszewski. One of the main ways Rachael's Angels spreads awareness is through billboards nationwide, which allows families who have experienced loss to connect with each other through area events.

"Losing a child is the deepest level of grief and pain a human can endure. It really is. You're forever broken. It feels like you died and you're still living. You have to carry on," Maliszewski said. "It's very important for other bereaved parents that have went through this hell on Earth to meet with each other and to spread awareness of the dangers of fentanyl."

In the future, Maliszsewski hopes that she can continue Swinney's dream of opening an animal rescue while continuing to educate people about fentanyl.

More: Springfield-Greene Co. Health Department launches app with opioid overdose resources

A 'poison' that 'doesn't discriminate'

Maliszewski hopes the billboards can help raise awareness not only of the deaths caused by fentanyl but the toxicity of the drug itself and how it can affect anyone.

"(Fentanyl) doesn't discriminate. It goes after whoever. You can never say 'not my child,'" Maliszewski said. "People back in the day, you made a mistake and you learned from it the next day. Now these kids today are making a mistake and they're dead. They never get a chance to learn from it. They didn't want to die; they had hopes and dreams and aspirations just like everybody else. It's a poison."

According to the DEA, illicit fentanyl is primarily manufactured in foreign labs and mixed in with other illegal drugs to increase the potency of the drug. Two milligrams of fentanyl — the equivalent of a few grains of table salt — are considered to be a potentially lethal dose.

"There is significant risk that illegal drugs have been intentionally contaminated with fentanyl. Because of its potency and low cost, drug dealers have been mixing fentanyl with other drugs including heroin, methamphetamine, and cocaine, increasing the likelihood of a fatal interaction," the DEA reported.

Maliszewski said that Swinney ingested the fentanyl as a result of taking Xanax in an effort to self-medicate.

Maliszewski encourages people to carry overdose reversal medications like naloxone, which work by blocking opioid receptors in the brain in order to reverse the effects of an opioid overdose.

Narcan, a nasal spray version of naloxone, can be purchased over the counter at chain pharmacies like Walgreens, CVS Pharmacy and Walmart and obtained for free through organizations in Springfield such as the AIDS Project of the Ozarks, Connecting Grounds, OACAC and more.

Naloxone only reverses opioid overdoses, meaning drugs like fentanyl, oxycodone, hydrocodone, morphine or heroin.

Springfield-Greene County Health Department offers an app called Revive417 that provides rescue guidance, information on recognizing the signs of an overdose, maps of drug disposal sites and treatment services, and information for people who have experienced a drug overdose.

Susan Szuch reports on health and food for the Springfield News-Leader. Follow her on X, formerly known as Twitter, at @szuchsm. Story idea? Email her at sszuch@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Springfield News-Leader: 'It's a poison': After daughter's death in Springfield, woman speaks out about fentanyl