The National Addiction Memorial honors the loved ones we’ve lost.

Justin was one of the most loving and kind people you could know. He started out using pain pills and marijuana when he was a teenager, He was a very shy person that had a lot of trouble meeting and talking to people. Eventually he met and fell in love with a girl named Rachel who is the mother of his children. He got a job roofing and they had a place. Then they both started with the heroin, and the addiction took over both of them. They moved back here and eventually she left. Justin was heartbroken. The children are with my nephew and his wife as they are in the process of adopting them. Justin was really shattered after he lost his babies. He was trying so hard to get it together and get sober for his children as well as himself but it just didn't happen. Justin was always willing to help anyone in need and would give you the shirt off of his back. My son was loved by everyone that knew him and he is missed by all. His son will never know his father and what a great guy he was. I thank God his daughter had almost 5 years with him before he passed away. His kids were his world and he loved them both with every fiber of his being. I want people to know that Justin was loved so much by all of us and we miss him every minute of every day. He wasn't a nobody; my boy was a somebody. If his story can save one life then his death will not be in vain. Justin was an organ donor and he did save other's lives by being a donor. Even though he was in a dark place he loved life and he loved his family with all of his heart. My son was one of my best friends and it shattered my heart to lose him. My life is forever changed. Justin touched a lot of hearts and he had a beautiful soul. I just want everyone that is lost to those demons called addiction to please seek help and don't be afraid. You can do this; you are a somebody and you are worth saving. Please don't have your loved one putting your last picture on this page telling your story like myself and so many others have had to do. Justin, I love you with all my heart and I always will. I hope you have found peace and you are flying high above with the angels. I will never forget you son and all of the joy you brought to my life and so many others. I miss you every day.

My mother was a strong woman. She battled with addiction for many years but was the most selfless person ever. She was a mother of three and she had three sisters, two grandchildren, and help create a church. She tried to help others who struggled with addiction but unfortunately couldn’t kick her own. I miss her voice. I miss her laugh and this will be the first birthday I will not hear her.

Zackariah was only 22 when he lost his battle with his addiction. Our son will never get the chance to know that amazing man his father could have been. He gave our son his green eyes and his intelligence. We had a rocky relationship but my heart is filled with nothing but love for the man that helped give life to the amazing little boy I call my son. We miss you every day.

Jordan was one of the happiest little boys you’d ever meet from the minute he surprised us and decided he wanted to be born on halloween day. He was a lover of all things in nature and was happiest at the turtle pond or catching frogs. His struggle began in his teenage years, but his love for his family, his mom in particular, never faltered, not even for a second. He showed up for family ALWAYS putting all of his personal struggles aside, even spending his last night on this earth helping his mom celebrate her anniversary. The last text he sent her was “be careful driving tonight mom the roads are bad” always thinking of others!!! He is missed more than words could ever describe and we are left with shattered hearts trying to pick up the pieces and figure out how to go on.

John was a good man with a loving heart. He got mixed up with drugs when he was introduced to meth while he struggled to work an overnight shift at a 24 hour gym. Before long, he was addicted, which ironically cost him his job, his livelihood, and his relationships with his family. His drug use compounded his mental state after his mother died. He distanced himself from everyone and spent his life on the streets of Las Vegas.
John wanted to change his life. He wanted help but addiction was cheaper, easier. He ultimately died of a heart attack, meth related...alone.
His girlfriend wanted to save him and start the life they dreamed of with their 4 year old daughter, Mia. But she was in California with family...getting help herself. And when she went to find him, it was too late. He died just 6 days shy of his 37th birthday.
We walk for John, if his story saves just one life...his death will not have been in vain.

Charlene Curtiss- daughter, sister, aunt, grandmother, and best friend
She was a protective big sister and loved her nieces and nephews who she would often spoil. If you asked her friends, they would introduce her to you as funny, loyal, and always willing to lend a helping hand. This was all before her addiction took control of her life. Her family and friends miss the woman we all knew.
She grew up 1 of 3 children in St Matthews S.C. She met Pete Curtiss and they married in 1989. She and Pete were blessed with 3 beautiful children, Amanda Nichole, Kayli Renee, and Peter J.
Charlene was not afraid to step up and help others and could often be found caring for others’ and helping out in the church nursery. The door was always open to their home and anything she had, others were welcomed to. During her husband’s stint in the military, Charlene met many friends and created lasting friendships. Charlene had a love for her family and friends but most of all she loved the Lord.
Many may know that military life is not always easy and comes with many sacrifices and separations. She experienced health problems that lead to her misusing prescription drugs. Medications that were prescribed to her by her doctors that were meant to help her ultimately robbed her of almost all of her quality of life and relationships.
Following an almost 20-year marriage, the family unit was suffering. Divorce came, followed by estranged relationships. Our once devoted wife, mom, daughter, sister, aunt, and best friend was traveling a road of destruction. Health conditions robbed her of peace and painless days over the next number of years. The loss of her own mother was tough for Charlene as well. Before she knew it, her addiction to opioids and other prescription meds left her living alone in an assisted living facility, unable to live and love independently as before. She was separated from family and close friends.
March 16, 2011 Charlene had posted on Facebook, “Ok well God knows what is going on in life and I need to remember I am his child and he holds me in his hands! Thank you, God for that promise of salvation and security.” Despite her troubles she would still reach out to those who loved her and knew her for the kind and gentle soul she was. However, the long distance and discorded relationships were not enough to help restore her health or her happiness.
Today and always, her family and friends are left to mourn her death but can rejoice in her Heavenly healing. On Tuesday morning, our beloved family member and friend was freed from a prison of guilt and torment and physical pains. She is no longer bound by opioids and prescription drugs and physical ailments, she has been set free!

Romans 8:35-39 KJV 35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? 36 As it is written, for thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. 37 Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. 38 For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, 39 Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Here follows the sermon our wonderful minister delivered at his Celebration of Life:

A Celebration of Resurrection – Jiri Parma Fletcher – September 1, 2018
Isaiah 61.1-3 – Mark 4.37-41 – The Rev. Sarah D. Odderstol

"Why? Why did this happen, Lord? Why did a brilliant, beautiful, empathetic, loving, young man die from addiction and overdose? Why?

Because you are here, because you knew and loved and cared for Jiri, no doubt, you have been asking the same kinds of questions. If you are hoping that I can answer your why questions, I am about to disappoint you. Jesus, himself, asked the same kind of question from the cross, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” And God…God was silent.

This silence, a silence that leaves us with no answer to our why questions, can lead people to say some pretty unhelpful things. Among them are: “This must have been a part of God’s plan.” and “God needed Jiri more than we did.” Or my personal favorite…“Everything happens for a reason.” My friends, everything doesn’t happen for a reason. Saying everything happens for a reason is like saying that addiction has some sort of divine purpose. That is ludicrous. While it is comforting to think that God needed Jiri in heaven that would imply that God wills us to suffer.

Jiri’s death is not God’s will. Causing Jiri’s family, Gabriel, and all Jiri’s friends, pain and grief is not a part of God’s plan. God wills for each and every one of us to have long, happy, healthy lives. Sometimes life gets in the way. Today, God’s heart is broken. Today, God grieves with us.

So, I have a question for you, “Has God ever answered your why questions?” Why is there poverty? Why do you allow children to die? Why is life so unfair? I have never received an answer to my why prayers. I don’t know anyone who has.

This is a question that intrigues me, “Why doesn’t God answer the question why?” The word why is used some 488 times in the English translation of the Bible. Of course, not all of these whys are questions posed to God. Of the “whys” asked of God, I have yet to find an instance where God actually answered the question why. That does not mean however that God did not respond. God seems to prefer to redirect. Let me give you an example.

In the book of Numbers, Moses had been leading the people of Israel in circles in the wilderness for decades when finally Moses had enough. The people complained about the food and the accommodations. This was not the scenic tour they thought they signed up for… Moses said to God, “Why have you treated your servant so badly? Why have I not found favor in your sight?” God did not give Moses an answer to his whys, but God did, however, offer Moses a ‘what now’. God told Moses to gather seventy elders to help in the task of leadership. God will respond with a “what now” if we are willing and able to listen.

So, what now? All of you now KNOW someone who has died from an opioid overdose. The opioid crisis is real! Talk to your family and friends about addiction and the dangers of opioid use. Lobby for increased access to quality addiction treatment; demand funding so that the cost of treatment doesn’t bankrupt families. Learn from Jiri’s death.

But also learn from Jiri’s life! Jiri had healing hands; he saved multiple lives with the skills he learned as a lifeguard. What’s to stop you from getting your CPR certification? Learn about Narcan, insist that your state sell this lifesaving overdose treatment over the counter.

Be curious, welcome strangers, love your grandma, explore the outdoors, dance in the rain…embrace your colorful, kind, unfiltered, and goofy self. People will thank you for it!

Sascha Daniels and Jiri were each other’s first friends. They spent hours exploring the woods around their neighborhood and Grandma Phyllis’ house. Where other children may have been fearful of things they didn’t understand, Jiri got curious and learned. Even as a little girl, Sascha cherished the time she spent with Jiri; with Jiri she had no inhibitions: she picked up bugs, got dirty, and learned about the outdoors. From Jiri and his family, Sascha learned to try new foods; she learned about other cultures. Sascha told me, “By being around Jiri, I learned to expose myself to new things, and I believe this really laid a foundation for who I became as an adult with such a strong interest in other countries and cultures.”

Learn from Jiri’s life. Be generous with yourself. You will change lives. Jiri changed lives.

Jiri weathered storm after storm in his lifetime. Jiri was born with a birth defect. When he was old enough to ask, he wanted to know why. Why did this happen to me? There is no answer to that question that can satisfy a child. Jiri was bullied in middle school. Then the surgery to correct his birth defect left him addicted to opioid painkillers and led to his heroin addiction. Is it any wonder that Jiri questioned God’s existence and was disdainful of organized religion? Life gave Jiri too few reasons to be able to believe in a good and loving God. Does this mean Jiri is lost?

In our story from Mark’s Gospel, did Jesus abandon his disciples when they panicked for their lack of faith as the chaos of their storm overwhelmed them? Jesus could have just walked away, you know. He did have a gift for walking on water. No! Jesus had compassion for them and he saved them despite their fears and lack of faith.

God’s mercy and love and compassion are beyond human comprehension. It is human hubris to think that we can set limits on our creator’s mercy. God’s love knows no limit. Jiri has returned to the God who created him…to the God who loves him.

One final what now…when you talk about Jiri and tell your friends about the man you loved and cared for, please do not say, he lost his battle with addiction. This implies that Jiri’s death was ultimately his own fault. He lost – had he just tried a little harder he could have beaten his addiction. No… Addiction is a disease that becomes terminal when someone overdoses or when overuse causes the body to fail.

Until addiction is talked about in the same way we talk about ALS or dementia or leukemia, addiction will carry with it a shadow of shame…as if having addiction or dying from addiction is the result of a personal failure. We – all of us – can change the way we talk about addiction. I wonder…maybe when people hear us talk about addiction differently, they will come to think about addiction differently. And when people think about addiction differently, addiction becomes a disease whose prevention and treatment are worth funding. Could happen!

Jiri Parma Fletcher lived a life worth learning from…with our help; Jiri’s death will make a difference."

Words cannot express the myriad of feelings we have experienced since this happened and we are soooo thankful to our friends and family for standing with us through this unbelievably difficult time. While nothing can change what has happened, we wish to keep the Love and Memories alive and continue to share Jiri with you as best we can. This is why we have chosen to devote our lives to telling our story in hopes we can help others find the path to their "True Journey to Recovery".

Words cannot express how important it is to help those suffering from addiction find a path to recovery! So if you know someone who needs help PLEASE do not turn your back! Instead, reach out for them to let them know there is hope, and try and help them find their own path to saving their life. Recovery is a "Celebration of Life" in itself and it begins with Forgiveness be it the 1st, 2nd, or even the 10th time. If we can help save just one life along the way we will have made the lives already lost of even more value.

So Please ... join us if you can in Celebrating Recovery!!

Love to All,

Carl and Dasha Fletcher

Steven was a kind, lovable, mischievous little boy who loved his family.
He earned his black belt in Karate from McCoy's Action Karate in Auburn in 2004.
Steven began to struggle with drugs around 2008 and could not escape the hold they had on him. No matter how many times he tried or how many rehabs he entered, the hold was just too great. He began using DXM, which to most of us is simply an over the counter cough medicine, but to so many young people today is the drug of choice. This drug caused him to be hospitalized on numerous occasions and made his addiction to drugs spiral out of control.
Steven tragically lost his battle on October 19, 2018 and will be greatly missed by his family and friends.
If the love of his family could have saved him, he would have lived forever, as they tried everything possible to help him overcome this disease.

Chris' childhood was filled with abuse that unfortunately continued into adulthood due to forming a trauma-bond with her abuser; "Mom". Chris began using drugs as an adolescent to escape reality and to "not feel anything". She overdosed the first time at the age of 18. Her "friends" panicked and dragged her unconscious body into a cold shower, which caused a heart attack, ultimately killing her. After abandoning her, they concocted a story and called for paramedics, claiming that she had forced her way in to shoot up. The time wasted on their departure and imagination cost her brain valuable oxygen. Good samaritan/overdose immunity laws did not yet exist and could have prevented this. She was brought back, but with significant heart damage and cognitive function issues. Those issues caused the codependency to strengthen, allowing the abuse to continue on. Eventually, the abuse rekindled her need for escape, and she again turned to drugs. She was never taught the dangers of cross over addiction, and so she was never truly sober. After stopping heroin, she took up excessive drinking, misusing prescription painkillers, then marijuana, and lastly back to heroin again. It was a heroin fentanyl mix that took her life, for the last time, in April of 2018. Her body went undiscovered for over 12 hours in a room of the home of her abuser. She died alone and in pain.

Natalie was an amazing big sister, mother, and daughter. She loss her battle to heroin on July 24,2018. She was extremely brave!! We love you and miss you very much.

Tessa Christine Kathleen Joseph, 30, died on Thursday, October 4, 2018 at her residence. Tessa was born on September 4, 1988 in Hastings, MI , the beloved daughter of Stephanie Beatty Joseph and the late Gerard Henry Joseph. She graduated from Central Catholic High School in 2007 and West Liberty University in 2011. She was an employee of the Health Plan, a member of Corpus Christi Catholic Church and Our Lady of Lebanon. Tessa was a member of the Ohio County Democratic Women and Narcotics Anonymous. Tessa struggled with addiction, but fought the dragon as best as she could. All of those who knew and loved her will miss her more than words can say. Her sense of humor, her fashion statements, and her strong compassion for the underdog are just a few things her circle of friends lost when Tessa flew to the Angels.

gofundme.com/TalkOD

He had so many plans with the ultimate goal of continuing to help save lives as a doctor. I am amazed by how meticulously he had arranged his various med school application files as I sift through his belongings in my attempt to make sense of his death.

A “New Yorker”-caliber editor when we met in February 2002, Jamie was hyper-intellectual with a crackling wit. Often bedecked in a bow tie and always bespectacled, he was a debonairly charming man.

Jamie was my most precious friend and a big brother among little ones. I am absolutely broken without him.

I am wistful that all of the love for Jamie, which so many have exhibited and for which I am ever-grateful, might have saved him had he known, but I don’t fool myself.

I will continue to honor Jamie for the rest of my life by advocating for the destigmatization of addiction and raising money to fund research for its treatment. 

Meredith struggled in adolescence with ADD and depression. She completed high school in 2006 and then headed for south Florida, seeking her own niche. There, “Mya” applied her free spirit to piercing, suspension acrobatics, and on the canvas of her beautiful skin, which accrued many tattoos, including a regal lotus crown on her forehead.  She returned home periodically to Iowa for summer family reunions. She aspired to be a welder and had begun coursework toward that end in 2016.   

After 30 days in the hospital, Meredith was released on September 14, clean and sober. Elated to be free of her addiction, she planned to return to Des Moines. She joyfully received family support, evidence of her heart’s turn toward recovery. She planned to begin substance use and mental health treatment, return to welding school, and maybe even take up the banjo with her mom. 

Meredith lost a friend to a heroin overdose in St. Pete on Sept. 18th. She had offered to take him to inpatient treatment that same day. Brokenhearted, she turned to the most dependable means she knew for treating emotional pain. 

Meredith died at age 29 on Wednesday, September 19 in Saint Petersburg, FL, of a heroin overdose. She is survived by her mother, Susan Myers, father, John Goerdt (both of Des Moines, IA), brothers Corey (Atlanta, GA) and Andrey (Des Moines, IA), and a large extended family.  

Going through her photos, she feels so close and alive. I can't believe that I'll never again hold her, laugh with her about her dad's and my many parenting mistakes, or get to tell her I love her. She didn't intend to die. I wish I knew what she was thinking when she took that last 'dose' of heroin. She seemed so excited to be coming home to get to treatment and return to the land of the living.

I think the pull of heroin is much greater than we families realize. We forget that over the months and years of use, even when it wasn't continual, the drug hollows out it's victim's ability to think, plan for the future, and make rational choices. When I cleaned out Meredith's purse and personal effects left at the hotel where she died, and then later her car, there were so many spent syringes. It made me sick. "Who IS this?!" These scenes didn't match the genuine desire to get sober I saw in her just a couple of weeks before her death.  Was the whole plan to come home a lie? 

I believe that my sweet daughter wanted with every fiber of her soul to heal and rejoin the circle of our family and her community.  That the awful toll heroin took was her strength to bounce back when her friend overdosed. She did the best she could at the time, but what little strength heroin had left her was insufficient to the challenge of one more heartbreak.  I know she never wanted to hurt us, she told me this. 

Did heroin, the grinding hopelessness and shame, the pull of surrender, win?  Maybe the point of Shatterproof is to give survivors the chance to say, NO. Love wins. Now.  And it begins with us. ~ Susan, Meredith's mom

Lisa Jane Young was a very strong, independent, gorgeous, family oriented woman. All of these characteristics made her so unique. Lisa has 4 daughters and 11 grandkids. Before she passed it was always evident that family meant everything to her.

Lisa struggled with addiction to crack cocaine and opioids and although her addiction took over her life, she never failed at saying how much she loved Jesus Christ first, her family and most importantly, her “grand babies”. Although addiction took over most of her life, she never stopped trying to educate others on how to kick this disease.

Lisa has written many books that we hope one day will get published as it will help so many others before it is too late.

We’d like to honor Lisa for her fight, for her wisdom during her fight, and we wanted to say “WE LOVE YOU AND MISS YOU MOMMY” ! We know she is safe, drug-free, happy, and now living her best life in heaven!

Matthew was introduced to me as a brother. He was 13 years younger than me. As Matt became older we became very close. He became a good friend to many. He became a father to one. Due to an injury, Matt became addicted to opioids. He mixed them with alcohol. Drugs took a great guy and faded him away to nothing. I love you Matt. I miss you, every day. I will try to make right by you. I'm sorry for my loss, brother. I will always love you!

Rodney struggled with addiction through all of his adult life. Living his life inflicted with this disease was a hard one. He was sober for lengths of time, positive, and happy. Rod was so strong and so devoted to beating addiction. Sadly, addiction won in December of 2012. His family and friends miss him immensely every day. He leaves behind two incredibly devoted, loving parents, 2 sisters, and 1 brother. Also, 2 brother in laws and 5 nieces and nephews who wish they knew him.
We love you ROD!

I lost my fiancé to his battle with his demons. He finally lost against them. He was my best friend, my everything, and he is gone too soon. Taylor hated doing drugs. He gave his all to quit so many times and he wanted nothing more than to beat this. He will always be remembered for his big, loving, compassionate heart. His love for his family, friends, me, and others touched so many lives and so many people cared for him. He was special in so many ways and I just wish he would’ve known that. He will forever be in mine and so many others hearts forever. He will never be forgotten and will always be missed and loved. I love you two ways babies. Now & forever <3 I still can’t believe you’re gone & I miss you more & more every single day.