Our Story
Drew was a wonderful son, brother, and friend.
He had a typical childhood. He was a cub scout and played youth baseball and basketball.
He loved to ski, hike, climb, longboard, and play video games with his friends.
He loved family beach vacations with his cousins, aunts, and uncles.
Throughout his childhood, Drew developed a love for technology. As a high school senior, he created his own multi-user, networked video game for an independent research course. We were not surprised when he decided to major in Computer Science at BU.
Drew excelled at BU, graduated in 2020 with a Degree in Computer Science.
He was 2 courses shy of a Masters Degree one year later. He was co-president of the OpenWeb club. His team won 3rd place in the 2017 BostonHacks competition – ironically, with a Relapse Prevention app. He had a wonderful 3-year internship with a software company in Cambridge — where he was the “go-to” guy for challenging projects. Drew had accomplished so much and we were so proud of him!
Then, the Covid pandemic and shutdowns hit and Drew’s world changed.
Suddenly, his classes and work went remote. His gym closed. There were fewer social gatherings. His whole routine was upended and he became more isolated. Drew had some minor anxiety issues growing up, but the Covid shutdowns amplified this. Someone convinced him that Xanax could help.
One day in the fall of 2020, he bought Xanax that was laced with fentanyl. He overdosed and stopped breathing. Fortunately, his roommates were with him and immediately called 911, and he was revived. We just couldn’t imagine that Drew would ever go there — it just wasn’t who he was!
We worked with Drew to educate him and to get him treatment, but something had changed. Drew had become addicted.
Studies suggest that as much as half the risk of becoming addicted depends on genetic make-up and we believe Drew was highly susceptible to addiction. Drew became more isolated. He was in denial. He hid his use from his friends, his family, from everyone.
We were shocked and unprepared for how fast and how strong Drew’s addiction took over his life. We sought help for Drew and education for ourselves. We could not understand how this could happen in what seemed like a blink of an eye.
As Drew’s struggles became more evident. His friends were great and tried to get him involved in their outdoor activities and adventures. They sensed that something had changed and was not right. They had a few conversations with him about the need to seek help. But these conversations were awkward. They weren’t sure how serious his issues were, what to say and what they could or should do.
Tragically, everything we did and Drew did was not enough. Drew’s addiction ultimately resulted in a fentanyl overdose.
We have been devastated by Drew’s death. At first, we were numb and empty…and still are at times.
We questioned everything. How could this happen to Drew? What should we have done differently?
We were overwhelmed with love and support from family and friends. We have eventually come to accept what happened. And we have poured our energy into the Friends for Drew Foundation to remember Drew, honor Drew, and prevent this from happening to other young adults and their families.
We need your help
To continue our progress - to add fresh content, to reach young adults on campuses, in high schools and on social media platforms across the country. To Save Lives!