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Nearly 4,000 hand-painted tombstones were placed on the National Mall, stretching from 7th St. SW to 12th Street SW this weekend.The tombstones featured the names, pictures and stories of those who had lost their battle with drug addiction.
Trail of Truth is the grassroots organization behind the display that it calls a “national cemetery for substance use related deaths.”
The organization was started by Alexis Pleus, who lost her son to an overdose 10 years ago. The goal of Trail of Truth is to change policies regarding access to treatment, reduce stigma and distribute opioid settlement funds in ways to reduce preventable deaths.
“The other part of that is just having community and just being together, because everyone who’s here understands exactly how that feels,” said Kathy Staples, who is with Trail of Truth.
On Saturday there was a ceremony featuring singing, speeches and fellowship among people who all shared one thing in common, they lost someone they loved to an overdose.
Last year, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported over 70,000 people died due to drug related issues, which is down compared to the last several years. The epidemic affects young, old, rich, poor and every race and region of the country.
As someone who has lost a brother to an overdose, the sight of thousands of tombstones with messages on them, such as a 66-year-old man’s saying, “he loved his kids and grandbabies so much” or a 24-year-old’s message that read, “wanted everyone to be happy,” can be almost overwhelming.
Each state is grouped together, and Northern Virginia resident Trip Ward was looking in the California section.
“Coming to see my son represented in this sea of tombstones,” said Ward. It 2019, his son Ryan Giglio died at the age of 26.
Ward said if he could speak to him again, he would tell his son: “Still love you, still proud of you.”
His advice for the parents of someone who is battling drug addiction: “We dealt with it for about 10 years. Just never give up. It’s a brutal path for them. And yeah, just never give up. We never did.”
One family traveled from Long Island, New York, to honor the memory of their beloved family member.
“I came here to represent my son, who passed a year ago, in August,” said Anna Rossi. “‘Jaden Morales’ is his name, he’s forever 25.”
Rossi said that being here, among people that have been in her shoes brings her comfort.
As Rossi spoke, she was holding a poster board with her late son’s picture on it, standing alongside her daughter, father and Jaden’s twin brother Jesse.
“Honestly, this is a big cloud that I can’t get away from, and it’s hard, it’s hard to get through life without him here,” said Jesse.
Jesse told WTOP that if he could have one more conversation with his brother, he would say, “I miss him and I love him, and I wish he was here.”
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