Stephanie Hellstern fondly remembers her son, Kyle Shane Sexton, as a great 16-year-old kid. But he’d begun getting into trouble at school and trying drugs.
In mid-July 2020, Hellstern came home and found Kyle slumped over and not breathing in the backyard of their home. Four months later, an autopsy report revealed Kyle had died from fentanyl intoxication.
“Even though Kyle should not have been doing any kind of drugs, he got Percocet from a friend without realizing what it was,” she said.
In recent years, cases like Kyle’s have become more common in North Texas, prompting Fort Worth police to create the region’s first specialized fentanyl unit to investigate overdose deaths.
To bring awareness to the increasing number of fentanyl-related deaths, Hellstern and other Fort Worth families who have lost loved ones gathered outside the Tarrant County Courthouse on May 3.
“Fentanyl is a silent killer,” she said. “We need to come together and realize that this is happening in our own schools, our own neighborhoods. … I want to get my city onboard.”
What is fentanyl?
Fentanyl is an addictive, synthetic opioid originally developed for pain management. It is often a drug of choice for post surgery patients because fentanyl causes less vomiting and fewer incidents of blood pressure drops than morphine — but it is 50 to 100 times stronger.
Locally, fentanyl has been identified in multiple substances, including counterfeit pills, methamphetamine, marijuana and heroin. You can’t tell if drugs contain fentanyl by smell, taste or touch.
In 2023, there were nearly 2,500 overdoses in Tarrant County, many of which were fentanyl-related, according to Tarrant County Criminal District Attorney Phil Sorrells. His office created a narcotics unit last year targeting fentanyl dealers.
Americans between the age of 35 to 44 are more likely to die from fentanyl poisoning than any other 10-year age group. But deaths among children 14 and younger are increasing more quickly than in any other population, according to Families Against Fentanyl.
Open conversations about fentanyl are important to ensure your children are educated on safety and drug use, Dr. Artee Gandhi, medical director of pain management at Cook Children’s Medical Center in Fort Worth, previously told the Report.
‘Bring the dark to light’
The fentanyl outreach event May 3 was hosted by the Association of People Against Lethal Drugs in partnership with the North Texas Fentanyl Coalition, which Hellstern founded. The coalition focuses on fentanyl education and advocacy by referring to deaths not as overdoses, but poisonings.
Over 30 attendees carried posters and banners with the faces of family members and children who died in recent years. Tarrant County Sheriff Bill Waybourn was also in attendance.
“I always tell people, we have to bring the dark to light and have those hard conversations about fentanyl,” said Hellstern. “If you don’t, then people live in shame or guilt.”
One by one, several families walked up the steps of the Tarrant County Courthouse to share their stories.
Afterward, attendees passed out Narcan, a nasal spray that reverses an overdose, to people driving by the event.
Signs of a fentanyl overdose include small pupils, falling asleep or losing consciousness, slowed breathing, choking sounds, a limp body and discolored skin. If you suspect an overdose, call 911 immediately and begin rescue breathing or CPR. Turn the person on their side to prevent choking.
For Hellstern, seeing families get involved in fentanyl advocacy helps turn pain into purpose. The same goes for Ofie Moreno, who shared the story of her son, Sebastian Genesis Moreno. Sebastian died from a fentanyl overdose in 2022 at age 24.
“My son was just loving, he was outgoing and he had this fighting spirit,” said Ofie Moreno. “That’s what has pushed me to do what I do, because no one’s gonna fight for our children but us.”
The North Texas Fentanyl Coalition plans to host more outreach events later this year.
David Moreno is the health reporter for the Fort Worth Report. His position is supported by a grant from Texas Health Resources. Contact him at david.moreno@fortworthreport.org or @davidmreports on X.
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This article first appeared on Fort Worth Report and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.