Showneen Hall of Riverview got a call on October 22, 2023, that no parent ever wants to get. The call she got was to let her know that her son, Walter Shumaker, had died of an overdose. To make matters worse, because Walter had been incarcerated a few times in his life, she did not receive support from her community in her time of need.
“After losing my son to fentanyl addiction, my family and I were met with judgment and stigma by the very community that should have embraced us,” Hall said. “The stress and harm caused by that treatment deeply affected my health and contributed to my suffering a heart attack.”
Hall’s son was just 27 years old at the time of his death.
Hall looked for support to help with her grief and found Tonya Aber of Ohio’s Facebook post about an organization she started for families who were grieving the loss of loved ones who passed from drug overdoses.
“Tonya told me about her losing her daughter, Jessie, who also died from a fentanyl overdose,” Hall said. “She also told me about the nonprofit she started to help families in the same situation as mine.”
Aber’s nonprofit is called 4 Them We Fight, and its mission is to love, support, advocate and educate veterans, addicts, those in recovery, those with mental illness and anybody else who may need a voice.
“We want to bring the veteran’s story of their heroism to the public, show those lost in addiction through those in recovery that hope is possible and bring strength and love to those who just feel beaten down,” Hall said. “This is why I started a Tampa chapter of 4 Them We Fight.”
Hall started the Tampa chapter of 4 Then We Fight to offer support.
“We are here to remind parents, especially mothers of addicted angels, that it is OK to not be OK,” Hall said. “There is no shame in loving a child who battled addiction, regardless of their past or their record.”
Through 4 Them We Fight, Hall has become a certified NARCAN provider and is currently looking for local businesses that would allow her to put free NARCAN boxes at their locations to help raise awareness about fentanyl overdose.
“NARCAN nasal spray competes with opioids to bind with the same receptors in the brain, reversing the effects of an opioid overdose in two to three minutes,” Hall said. “This can save lives.”
Hall is also hosting her first support group meeting on Saturday, July 11, at 9 a.m. at Concierge Healthcare Training Services & Consultants, located at 504 S. Kings Ave. in Brandon.
“I will be hosting the meetings once a month, and they are free to attend,” Hall said. “We are also looking for toiletry items to be donated so we can give out toiletry bags to the homeless in our area.”
To learn more about 4 Them We Fight, you can visit its website at https://4themwefight.org/ or contact Hall at 813-270-6896.
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