I wish the world could know the beautiful soul that Jeremy possessed. His love, wisdom, sensitivity and unimaginable concern for those he loved were amongst his many gifts. He had such passion for life and he inspired me all the time. He loved to ski and ride horses. He loved to play football, baseball and basketball. He loved camping, hunting, fishing, and hiking to name a few. He would put himself in harm's way to help an animal, especially a dog! He deeply cared for the feelings of others. He would do just about anything for the people he loved. The number of wonderful friends that he had was a testimony to the kind of person he was.

Jeremy began using drugs after a horrible knee injury that ended his high school football career at the beginning of his sophomore year. He had three surgeries on his knee and after each surgery he was prescribed oxycodine for the pain. He had always sworn he would never drink or take drugs; but his intentions really changed after his introduction to pain medicine!

He spent most of his senior year away in a boarding school which was also a drug treatment and rehabilitation program. He did amazingly well in this program and graduated from high school. He then returned home where he did alright for a while and then unfortunately got caught up in drugs again. We, as a family, as well as Jeremy were always trying to figure out what to do next.

We sent him to outpatient treatment several times unsuccessfully. We discovered that he was doing heroin in the spring of 2009. We were so horrified! Jeremy wanted help for the heroin use and we insisted upon it. We sent him for inpatient treatment. He came home and after being clean for a period of time, he used heroin again and this time it took his life!

Jeremy was attending college at the University of Maryland, University College in College Park, Maryland at the time of his death. He was a sophomore and majoring in Criminology.

It was a long struggle for Jeremy and for our family, to try and achieve sobriety. A struggle he lost on September 7, 2008. We are devastated by his death. It's a loss that we can hardly bear. We miss him desperately. Our lives are changed forever by this irreplaceable loss. Its agony knowing that we will never see your beautiful blue eyes and your amazing smile again. We grieve for him every waking minute. And yet, the love and the memories we shared do comfort us.

I am organizing a 5K walk/run on Memorial Day 2009 in Jeremy's memory. The proceeds will benefit the Partnership for a Drug Free America. It is called "Jeremy's Run". I can only pray that my beautifully child is now at blissful peace. I love you and miss you Jeremy, with all my heart. Until we meet again! Mom