Mark Russell’s son was a junior at the University of Oklahoma when he thought he was taking a Xanax. Instead, it was a counterfeit pill laced with a deadly dose of fentanyl.
Since losing his son, Russell has dedicated himself to raising awareness and pushing for accountability in the fentanyl crisis.
“When you knowingly put something in a drug that’s as potent and deadly as fentanyl—call it what it is: it’s murder,” Russell told Emily’s Hope founder Angela Kennecke in an upcoming episode of the Grieving Out Loud podcast.
Now, there’s a glimmer of hope in the fight. According to a new NPR analysis of Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) data, U.S. drug deaths dropped by about 40% last year among people under 35—roughly 15,000 fewer lives lost compared to the previous year.
Just weeks ago, Emily’s Hope reported on new research revealing that fentanyl alone is the primary driver of overdose deaths in teens and young adults. Over the past decade, drug overdoses have claimed more than 230,000 lives in this age group. In 2021 alone, fentanyl and other drugs killed more than 31,000 people under 35. But by 2024, that number had dropped to approximately 16,690, based on the latest provisional data from the CDC.
The CDC says several factors are contributing to the decline, including expanded access to naloxone—a medication that can reverse opioid overdoses. Emily’s Hope is playing a part in that effort through a partnership with the State of South Dakota to increase naloxone availability statewide. Since May 7, 2024, the organization has distributed more than 5,300 naloxone kits across South Dakota, including nearly 4,000 in Sioux Falls alone. Meanwhile, local officials say overdose deaths in Sioux Falls have dropped by 20% in the first half of 2025.
The CDC also credits prevention and community response programs for helping reduce deadly overdoses—efforts that parents like Russell believe are vital.
“No parent should ever have to hear those words—‘your child is dead’—and there’s no manual that tells you how to go on after that,” Russell said.
In an upcoming episode of Grieving Out Loud, Russell shares how he spent four years seeking justice for his son’s death—and why he believes awareness, accountability, and compassion are key to saving lives.
