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

A talented soul has left this universe way to short due to the power of addiction. Mike (known to his sisters, and family as Mikie) struggled with addiction for decades. He was able to find support through different groups, but ultimately kept falling back to addiction no matter how hard he tried. It is a tragedy for us and all of those who knew him as he was such a warm hearted, funny, and loving person.

Kind-hearted and sharp-witted, Boe’s charismatic nature was infectious, and he invariably won over any room he ever bounded into. His friends and family will forever remember the charming boy with the crooked smile, the straight-A student too smart for his own good, the athlete who towered above just about everyone.

But they will also remember the dark path that ultimately took his life.

The painful cycle of drug addiction and the constant battle to get clean was a struggle that consumed Boe in entirety, the specter of his addictions extinguishing the bright light of this brilliant young man far too soon.

He is survived by his darling daughter Layla, best friend Katelyn Blume, mother and stepfather Beth and Dennis Tweed, brother and sister-in-law Joseph and Domenica DeLillo, grandmother Elizabeth Fitzpatrick, and a heartbroken extended family.

There is no greater tragedy than the potential of youth snuffed out before its time. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made in Boe’s memory to www.Shatterproof.org, so that our pain can prevent another family from feeling this devastating loss.

The smell of leather and earth. The sound of large work boots. The look of a hard day’s work; messy hair, dirty hands. A chipped tooth smile that gives you a warm feeling. These are the things that remind me of my dad. He was one of those people that made you feel safe, without explicitly telling you they were always going to protect you.
On April 29, 2007, that safeness I once felt disappeared. My dad had a hard childhood and with that came a lot of demons that he kept locked away. He engaged in criminal behaviors, and had gotten in trouble with the law multiple times from a young age. His past ultimately set him up for harder obstacles when it came to doing things the right way. My dad got caught up with drugs from a young age. Six months before he passed away, he checked himself into detox saying, ‘I don’t want to be like this anymore’. From the time of his detox admission until the night of April 28th, 2007 my dad was sober. I can’t tell you what changed his mind, what pull or drive was there, or if I had even crossed his mind during that time. The last time I spoke with my dad was on the phone a couple of days prior. It was not until Sunday April 29, 2007 that I found out my direct line to my father had been cut off. My father was found in his apartment and had passed away from a drug overdose. A lethal mix of prescription medication, illegal substances, and alcohol took my father’s life. I will never be able to see, hear, or talk to my father again. I do not want this to define who he was as a person. His demons, his choices all came from a place of horror and turmoil and I can’t knock him for that. I wasn’t in his shoes. For this reason, I want my father to be remembered as the fun-loving guy that he was for me and so many others.

Everyone loves Jay. Everyone. He was beyond brilliant as a child - taught himself to read at 3; played 5 instruments and learned 5 different languages. He was a fabulous saxophone player. Jay made friends wherever he went, and always knew how to make others laugh. He was an avid reader, and knew lots about lots of subjects. He attended North Grafton Elementary School, graduated from Worcester Academy in 2007, and Brown University in 2011 with a degree in Cognitive Science.

The disease of addiction then gained control, and he tried many times to overcome it. Also on his trek, he met and helped many others who were afflicted by addiction as well. It took its final toll on Jay just one day shy of 11 months clean. He would want others to keep up their fight and stay true to themselves- give yourself over to your Higher Power. He is already missed by his family, family friends, and in the recovery world. Jay - you were such a ray of light; you'll fit right in with all the stars in the heavens.

Brett (aka "The Hulk") Reagan was - and continues to be - one of those truly rare, genuine souls. He never accepted the status quo and always wanted more for himself, which I hope he knows I greatly admire him for.

Brett was passionate about bodybuilding and general health/fitness and while he was both handsome and strong, he was also incredibly thoughtful, intelligent, caring, and gentle. He loved EDM and was drawn to anything that had to do with the galaxy. I like to picture him soaring through the cosmos, rocking out to all his favorite beats. Music is one way I have still managed to feel connected to him.

It's impossible to sum Brett up in a couple of sentences, and I won't attempt to. My family and I miss him every single second of every day. I miss our long phone conversations, being enveloped in his big bear hugs, and laughing hysterically with him about ridiculous things others probably wouldn't find funny.

He is no longer with me physically on this earth, but he is somewhere, and one day - somehow - I will find him.

Rich Medina was a fun and kind individual who is loved and missed by an immense amount of people. His memory will forever live in all of us. His story has taught us to be caring, laugh often and be brave.

We lost my beautiful brother, Phillip, on June 29, 2017. He died of an opioid overdose. He had been in recovery since November 2016.

Phillip left behind two sweet sons, Anthony and Nathan. He loved them more than anything. He also loved basketball, music, dogs, and making people laugh.

Phillip was one of the most loving and lovable people I've ever known. He had the gift of being able to talk to anyone; he put people at ease and connected with them authentically.

His loss has been unbearable, and we miss him like crazy.

May 2012. Just a week shy of me graduating high school, I was sitting in the living room with my parents when my dad suddenly started having a seizure. It was the scariest moment of my life. It was even harder to find out that it was caused by my dad's alcoholism. My dad went into rehab for the first time right out of the hospital. He missed my graduation party, and we had to sign him out of rehab just for a couple hours so he could see me walk across the stage and receive my diploma. My dad returned from rehab a changed man. He was a better dad and a better husband, but he only stayed sober for about a month. Ever since, it was a constant struggle in my life watching my dad fight his demons to stop drinking. Another hospital visit turned into another rehab stay. There was no doubt my dad tried to quit. I could see him fighting it every time we were together. He loved his family so much and I know he didn't want to lose us, but he didn't know how to live without alcohol. He finally lost his battle June 21st, 2015. He was an amazing man; an amazing father, husband, and son. From 2012 to 2015, our family struggled quite a bit. We felt like we had to hide it. Explaining to people that my dad was just sick, or that everything was just fine. But it wasn't. It wasn't until right before my dad passed that I was able to forgive him and understand that it was a disease and it wasn't his fault. I also understood that it is not something that we have to hide or be embarrassed by anymore. People are fighting this disease everyday. They need to know that we are here to help them and that they don't have to hide anymore. End the silence.

My brother struggled with his substance use disorder since he was a young teenager. He grew up in the 70s, when drug experimentation was "accepted". Unfortunately, his genetics weren't conducive to this experimentation (he was my half brother and his biological father also suffered from a severe substance use disorder his entire life and ultimately died from complications related to that in his 50s as well). He did well for a while and even was director of a drug treatment center on two separate occasions. Ultimately, however, his struggle was so powerful that he would succumb sooner or later and begin using again. He would have to feign being suicidal just to be admitted to a mental health facility to obtain treatment, which I think is an absolute travesty. When he died, he had just been released from a treatment center in Las Vegas (he lived in Florida but that was the ONLY treatment facility that had a bed for him that my family could find). He was on librium, prescribed by the treatment facility, and took heroin and apparently the combination is what led to his death. He died alone in a hotel room in Las Vegas. However, I know angels surrounded him--he was released from his long struggle and suffering. I only wish it hadn't taken death to release him from his deep shame and sense of failure that his struggle brought him his whole life. Ronnie was and is deeply loved and missed by his family and friends. His substance use disorder did not define him, to me--he was SO MUCH MORE. I hope we can bring awareness to the horrible sense of shame and self–hatred so many people suffering from this disorder have and that we, as society, perpetuate, even in the healthcare industry (I'm a registered nurse and I hear deplorable terminology used by my fellow nurses when describing patients who are suffering from this disorder). I also hope we can make changes that bring real treatment options for ALL people suffering with this disorder, regardless of their ability to pay. It has to be prioritized in the same way that treatments for any other chronic, serious, widespread, eventually terminal disease would. Thank you, Shatterproof, for your tireless efforts to effect change. Namaste...

She was very happy most of the time or at least she hid it well if she was not. Loved being a mother and she was very close to her brother who passed away in August of 2014. She couldn't deal with it and went into depression and self medication. She hit rock bottom and we thought was making a comeback, but she was still hurting and hiding it. I miss her every day and when I look into her two beautiful children eyes I see her ♡

She was our pride and joy, an educated, beautiful spirt, who is missed, our hearts are broken.

Jordan struggled with addiction for over 20 years. He faced it head on and never gave up, even in his darkest of days. He made every attempt to get well and fought harder than I ever could have. He was a wonderful brother to me and my four siblings and a joyful son my parents were so proud of. I will never know a light quite as bright as he. He was a golfer, writer, brother, son, fiancé, uncle, cousin, comedian, artist, engineer, child at heart...so many things. I hope I can live life with as much vivacity as he did. Jordan may have suffered from addiction but it did not define who he was. We will forever miss and love him, we will forever celebrate the wonderful person he was.

My brother fought a good fight. He returned home from a 6-week stay in rehab and overdosed less than 2 days later. He left a wife, parents, and a niece and nephew (and sister) behind. We are devastated.

I truly hope that he is not remembered for his struggle with addiction, as that does not define him. He was the best uncle I could have ever hoped for to my children. He was smart, funny, and so much stronger than he knew.

I miss his smile, his laugh, and his quick wit. I miss watching him play with my children. I miss him.

My daughter was an amazing mother to her kids, but she was struggling with post partum depression after her second child. And that's when her life started spiraling out of control. Court took her kids and then she was made to leave her home so the kids could come back home as she was not permitted around her kids whom she loved and took very good care of. She became addicted being around the wrong people who helped to keep her on the drugs to feel better. Her family tried as hard as we could to help her but she lost everything the day her whole world was taken from her and then she eventually lost her life to the drugs. Now her kids have no mom because court started the ball rolling till she lost it all, even her life. She was loved by everyone and missed so much. The drugs I guess took her depression and sadness away for a little while and now everyone that loved her is hurting.