North Texas moms fight against fentanyl poisoning, share heartbreaking stories of loss
A group of North Texas moms are stressing a fentanyl poisoning can happen to anyone. They're speaking from experience. This weekend, they'll be sharing their personal stories during a special event.
Ofie Moreno said Friday should be a celebration.
"Today is my son's birthday," she said. "Today, he would have turned 28 and we were robbed from that."
Just over three years ago, she lost her son to fentanyl.
"The day we found my son, we had never heard of fentanyl," she said. "We tried to show the police officer the pills that were found next to my son and they acted like it was a bomb."
Moreno said she later learned fentanyl is 50 times stronger than heroin and 100 times stronger than morphine.
"I was angry," she said. "I was angry. My child shouldn't have died."
Since then, she's been on a mission.
"Something stirred up in me," she said. "This fight, that I was going to find some kind of justice."
Last year, she started the organization Bash'en Fentanyl with a mission of educating others about the dangers of fentanyl and saving lives.
"We've been traveling nationwide," she said. "We've gone to New York, we've gone to Washington, D.C. The children have been deceived. They're not going out on the street and buying fentanyl, they're not. They're buying oxy or other different methods that are not fentanyl."
She said her organization has now grown to about 2,000 members. Many of them are moms.
Alejandra Uribe also lost her son.
"He was a great kid," she said.
"Their death is not going to be in vain," Uribe said. "We see eye to eye in wanting to reach out to the youth."
This Sunday, they're bringing the community together. From 1 - 6 p.m. at Marine Park in Fort Worth, they'll host a car show and presentation on the dangers of fentanyl. They'll read the names and show the faces of 300 victims.
"So it can make an impact, and they can see reality," Moreno said. "It's a powerful thing, it's breathtaking."
Moreno said if they can save one life, all the hard work is worth it.
