Patricia Drewes’ daughter, Heaven, loved to watch the sun come up. And although she was only 5-foot-4, she could play a didgeridoo – a wind instrument that Australian Aboriginal people make out of a long, hollow tree branch – like nobody’s business.
But Heaven died a little more than two years ago, the victim of a lethal drug overdose. Drewes spoke with John C. Rose on Wednesday’s Town Talk about an event set for July 25 to raise awareness about drug addiction and what Drewes calls “drug induced homicide.”
The July event will take place at the Vance County Courthouse from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. and Drewes said anyone who wants to add a loved one’s name to a banner – that will be displayed at the Henderson event and other events across the state – to contact her via social media or by telephone. “People are adding their loved ones daily,” she said. The deadline to submit names is June 11.
“We are trying to bring awareness to what is going on in our community,” Drewes said, of overdoses and deaths associated with drugs laced with fentanyl. Drewes said her daughter died because what she thought was heroin was actually pure fentanyl. “When you do that, it’s not an overdose. When you add fentanyl, that changes everything. That’s murder,” she said.
“My child made the choice to do drugs,” Drews said. “But she did not make the choice to die.”
Since her daughter’s death, Drews has worked to raise awareness and help find resources for families struggling with addiction.
The first banner she created has more than 40 names on it – the second banner is still a work in progress, but Drewes said she’ll carry the banners to events in North Carolina and a national event later this summer in Washington, D.C.
Drewes created a Facebook group called Forgotten Victims Vance, Granville, Franklin, and Warren Counties N.C. which has helped families work through their grief as well as providing support and awareness. “You don’t have to go this alone,” she said. “We’re here to help you as much as possible.”
The harsh reality of addiction is all around, Drewes said. “Don’t ever say ‘not my child’” she warned. (Addiction) doesn’t discriminate. It can happen to anyone’s child,” she said.
For more information about adding a loved one’s name to the banner, contact Drewes at 252.204.9611 or via FB through the Forgotten Victims page.
(TownTalk Audio for June 2, 2021)