Monroe County Stories

Heather

I lost my 20 year old son, Caleb, on Christmas Day 2015. It was a counterfeit pill…something I didn’t know existed. I knew he had an addiction to opioids and begged him to come home, but I now know that wasn’t enough. He felt shame and didn’t want to ask his grandfather to take him to a Suboxone clinic. I didn’t know much about addiction, and my son lived 200 miles from me. With my own chronic health issues, I wasn’t able to be there like he needed. Since his death, I have educated myself on illicit drugs and spoken at multiple International Overdose Day events. I founded Caleb’s Song, a non- profit organization, to continue my advocacy and use music as a deterrent for adolescents. Caleb left behind a brother and two sisters who miss him every day.