New Hampshire Sen. Jeanne Shaheen traveled to Washington D. C. for President Donald Trump's State of the Union Address and invited a special guest impacted by the opioid crisis to join her.
"To be her guest is just so wonderful and it gives me the opportunity to history represent all the families in New Hampshire who have lost a loved one to the opioid crisis," said Jeanne Moser of East Kingston.
Moser's family was directly impacted by the opioid drug crisis. Her 27-year-old son Adam died in 2015 after an overdose of fentanyl.
"I think it's important to have her there and to have those voices who are talking about what the challenges are as we deal with this crisis," said Shaheen.
Both Shaheen and Moser hope to hear President Trump discuss the epidemic and his plans on what he's going to do to address it.
Since their son's death in 2015, Moser and her husband Jim have dedicated their lives to gaining federal support through their organization "Zero Left."
"What 'Zero Left' advocates for is the proper use and storage of it while it's in the home," Moser said.
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"Zero Left" also advocates for doctors to have conversations with their patients about the effects of pain medications after surgery.
Close to 500 people died from drug overdoses in the Granite State in 2016 - the third highest per capita rate for overdoses nationally.
On Monday Shaheen met with New England High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA), a task force of law enforcement agencies to help stop drug traffickers. The organization is in threat of losing their funding.
"It's unfortunate that even though we've said this is a public health emergency we're not seeing any more help for people who need it," said Shaheen. "I would like to hear the president say that's he's going to commit to supporting more resources to address this epidemic."
Moser wants to hear the same.
For now, Moser and her husband are doing their best to make sure their son's death is not in vain.
"To have a family go through the pain we have gone through is not something that you'd wish on anybody. Our hope is to just get the education and awareness out there that opioids can kill." Moser said
Shaheen is asking for $25 billion in funding over the next two years to help battle the drug crisis.
