Families share stories after losing loved ones to fentanyl

Fairhope, Alabama (WKRGMore) — More than 100 people gathered at Fair Hope High School on Tuesday night to learn about the dangers of fentanyl. Family members also shared their stories after they lost their love to a fentanyl overdose.

Mike Reese is a former lieutenant in law enforcement and a father who lost his son to a highly addictive and deadly drug.

“I lost my son two years ago to a fentanyl overdose,” Reese said. “He died of fentanyl-laced heroin. My son was 34 and just a great guy.”

Reese now tours schools and communities to share her story with parents and children, reminding them that fentanyl is everywhere.

“They put it in pills, they put it in weed, they put it in vape pods. Our message to kids and students is that one pill can kill.

According to the CDC, one person dies from a fentanyl overdose every four and a half minutes.

Nineteen-year-old Jacy Werner from Baldwin County lost her brother to fentanyl just six months ago.

“On September 11th, I was standing in my kitchen looking out the window and I saw a police car drive up the driveway. My mother looked at my father and said, ‘Ben has just been arrested. I remember that day very clearly and in that moment I knew Ben wasn’t dead and I ran outside and my boyfriend was there and I remember saying ‘Ben is dead’ .

Since then, Werner Benjamin Werner Foundation In honor of her brother. She goes to school, shares his story, and offers different ways to help children struggling with drugs.

“I’m there to say they can talk to me. I’ll also fund their rehab if they want or need it.”