SPOKANE, Wash. — A Spokane mother who lost her 24-year-old son to a fentanyl overdose has transformed her grief into action by launching a community initiative to combat the deadly drug.
Kitara Johnson-Jones kicked off “Gabriel’s Challenge” on Mother’s Day in honor of her late son, Gabriel Fensler, who died in March, just one day after his 24th birthday.
Nearly 400 people attended the kick-off event.
While grieving his loss, Johnson-Jones discovered an email from Gabriel outlining a plan to help people struggling with addiction. She decided to turn his vision into reality, creating Gabriel’s Challenge as his legacy.
“Fentanyl is not exempt to one income. It doesn’t discriminate, and so, neither should we,” Johnson-Jones said. “We need every hand on deck to be able to address this epidemic, because if we don’t, we’re going to continue to lose people. And Gabriel understood this.”
The initiative, which runs from Mother’s Day through Father’s Day, will hold its first mapping meeting Tuesday night at Spokane City Hall. Spokane County Sheriff John Nowels will attended to present data on current fentanyl trends in the community.
The meeting will focus on identifying available resources to help families affected by addiction.
“I hope after this, we will know what’s available, what’s missing, and we can work together to create what’s possible and maybe even have a phase-two. So, what does it look like at the policy level, at the legislative level, at the city level, at the county level? What does it look like,” Johnson-Jones said.
For more information on Gabriel’s Challenge or to get involved, visit www.gabrielschallenge.org.
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