A memorial with 22,000 faces carved on pills to represent Americans who have died from an opioid overdose is going on display in front of the White House.
Each pill in the Prescribed to Death tribute, created by the non-profit National Safety Council, represents one of the lives lost to the epidemic.
One of those pills is carved with the face of Davis Owen, an honor student and class president who got hooked on Vicodin after trying it once to help him fall asleep.
A memorial with the faces of 22,000 people who died from an opioid overdose is going on display in front of the White House
Each pill in the Prescribed to Death tribute, created by the non-profit National Safety Council, represents one of the lives lost every year to the opioid epidemic
His mother Missy believes Davis, who struggled to fall asleep when he was stressed, was looking ‘for something like Advil PM or Tylenol PM’.
Instead he found an old leftover bottle of Vicodin with 30 pills inside, and saw that the label said ‘May cause drowsiness’.
‘He was one of those one in 10 people that have that euphoric experience when taking an opioid medication,’ she told WTVF.
‘And he continued to use that bottle until it was gone. By that time he was completely addicted.’
Each pill has a face, carved into it by a 3D printer, of someone who fatally overdosed on opioids in 2015
The memorial officially launched in Chicago on November 2017 and has also been hosted in Pittsburgh and Atlanta
Missy said her 20-year-old son eventually became hooked on recreation opioid heroin, which he overdosed on in 2014.
So when she heard about the memorial, she knew she wanted to help put a face on the crisis that affects one in four Americans every year.
The exhibit has made Missy realize just how many families have had to learn to ‘live differently’, just like she did.
‘[These families] learned their new normal, and learned to live without someone that they loved and cared for deeply,’ she said.
The memorial will be at the Ellipse in the President’s Park at the White House from April 12 to 18
NSC spokeswoman Maureen Vogel (pictured) said the memorial has caused many people to consider making a change in their lives
‘Davis’ story is so sad and so awful. But it’s not uncommon.’
Each pill has a face, carved by a 3D printer, of someone who fatally overdosed from opioids in 2015.
The memorial officially launched in Chicago on November 2017 and has also been hosted in Pittsburgh and Atlanta.
It will be at the Ellipse in the President’s Park at the White House from April 12 to 18.
Tatiana L Landry is one of the opioid epidemic victims who is featured in the memorial
NSC spokeswoman Maureen Vogel said the memorial has caused many people to consider making a change in their lives.
‘[People say] “It’s encouraging me to change. It’s encouraging me to talk to my doctor. It’s encouraging me to talk to my own family”‘, she said.
‘Data is only part of the story,’ she added. ‘You have to put a face on the statistic for people to really relate to it.’
Fourteen more cities have since expressed their interest in the memorial and a stop in Ohio has been scheduled next.