Mothers raise awareness for National Fentanyl Prevention and Awareness Day

HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, Fla., (WFLA) — Wednesday, August 21, is National Fentanyl Prevention and Awareness Day.

A local group of mothers who have lost children to the drug are coming together to try and raise awareness on how deadly it is.

Debra Flanigan carries NARCAN wherever she goes.

“Before Casey, I didn’t know what NARCAN was, didn’t know what fentanyl was, and now I carry it, so I can try and help someone else,” she said.

She lost her daughter, Casey, in April of last year.

“The one pill killed Casey instantly,” Flanigan said. “She was gone. She thought it was a Xanax, but it was a straight fentanyl pill.”

A group of mothers are coming together for the prevention and awareness day to try and make a difference.

“Here we have a little setup with a lot of angel’s pictures, so everyone can see what happened to our babies,” Flanigan said.

“I don’t want my son’s death to be in vain,” Showneen Hall said.

According to addictiongroup.org , over 150 people die from overdoses involving synthetic opioids, like fentanyl, every day.

Showneen Hall is another example of a mother whose child was taken too soon.

“Walter is a perfect example of a broken, addicted angel, and I think a lot of families are afraid to get up and speak out about it,” Hall said. “I just want them to know that we are here and we’re trying to build a local community, together.”

Her son, Walter, fought a long battle with addiction before he died in October of last year.

“I’m just trying to bring awareness to the fentanyl crisis, but also the addiction part of it. Because majority of these angels are addicts,” she said.

The mothers do not want anyone who is struggling to think that they are alone.

They both tell 8 On Your Side that doing things like raising awareness are healing for them and that they are trying to end the stigma, one day at a time.

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