Gloucester County held its first vigil to remember drug overdose victims on Wednesday night.
WASHINGTON TWP. -- Don Riebel wishes he had understood sooner what was happening to his son.
He wishes his child hadn't been prescribed opioid pain medication after surgeries for high school sports injuries.
He wishes he had understood addiction.
"I looked at it as something that he has to grow out of," Riebel said.
Through Colin Riebel's struggle with addiction to pain pills and later heroin, his father learned about the disease that stole his son's life and has made it his mission to educate others.
Riebel joined hundreds of other parents, family members and friends gathered at James G. Atkinson Memorial Park on Wednesday evening for Gloucester County's first candlelight vigil to honor those lost to addiction.
Gloucester County officials reported 56 drug overdose deaths so far this year in the county, compared to 60 for all of 2015.
Those remembered at Wednesday's event -- more than 100 in all -- included residents from around South Jersey. Many attendees wore shirts with the names and images of their loved one.
The event wasn't just about remembering. It was also a chance to provide resources for addicts and families still fighting this battle.
Beth Santini said she came to the vigil to honor her son, "because he mattered."
"Just because that's how he died doesn't mean that's how he lived," she said. "He was a great kid and people loved him."
Santini pressed charges against her son, Sean D. Manning, when he stole from her to support his addiction.
"It had just gotten to the point where you have to put your foot down," she said. "You have to do something. That was my effort to try to save Sean from Sean."
She didn't turn her back on her son, though. She attended his hearings and kept in touch with prosecutors.
"Don't let him out," she told the prosecutor.
He was eventually released and she brought him back to her Oaklyn home. Her son told her that, while in jail, he had arranged to seek treatment in Pennsylvania. She dropped him off on June 5, 2012, as he headed for rehab. He died of a heroin overdose five days later.
She feels it's important to share her family's story.
"I share my story so others don't feel as isolated as I did," she said.
Michelle Bush, of Maple Shade, lost her son Adam to a heroin overdose in 2015.
"He was the most loving, caring, kind and charismatic individual you'd ever want to meet," his mother recalled. "He gave the best hugs in the world."
The 30-year-old struggled with addiction for at least 10 years, Bush said. Those years included several stints in rehab.
No one makes a choice to become an addict, she said.
"This is a disease," she said. "They are normal people. They are our sons, daughters and husbands and wives."
The speakers at Wednesday night's event talked about the universality of addiction.
The new Gloucester County Addictions Task Force was formed to help connect residents with available services and support, and to combat the stigma associated with addiction.
Freeholder Jim Jefferson spoke about the importance of creating an environment in which addicts can find help.
"I wonder why there was such a stigma in the first place," he said.
He spoke about losing his grandmother to lung cancer after she spent years smoking cigarettes. When she developed cancer, no one condemned her for choosing to smoke, Jefferson said. "They saw her in need and they worked to help her."
The same needs to happen for addicts, he said.
"Somehow along this road we've got the change the way we look at each other," he said. "We've got to change the way we deal with judgment. We've got to change the way we deal with condemnation."
Washington Township resident Debbi Slotnick lost her daughter, Kimberly Rose Slotnick, to a heroin overdose in February. She hopes those who see addicts as simply victims of their own poor choices will remember that each addict is someone's child.
"What people tend to forget is that there's somebody at home," she said. "That's their baby."
Her daughter battled addiction for about 14 years and made several trips to rehab. She was clean for about three years before a relapse last November.
Slotnick described her daughter as a hard worker and a devoted aunt to her seven nieces and nephews.
"Kimberly was loving and joyful and beautiful inside and out," her mother said. "Her sense of humor was above and beyond."
Freeholder Dan Christy spoke about a family member who struggled with addiction.
"I know what it's like to walk that fine line between loving somebody and enabling somebody, and wondering if you are doing the right thing," he told the crowd. "It's not our fault. It's not their fault. This is a disease."
That last statement drew a round of applause from the audience.
As darkness fell, a sea of candles lit up the park as attendees quietly watched a slideshow of local men and women who lost their battles with addiction. Some in the audience wiped away tears as each name was read aloud.
Colin Riebel was 22 years old when he died of a heroin overdose in 2013.
The Triton Regional High School athlete suffered several injuries, including a torn rotator cuff and ACL tears. Each required surgery and medicine to manage pain. When Colin told his parents that he was addicted to the meds, they immediately sought help, his father said, but the challenges continued.
He later sought drugs on the street and eventually made two trips to inpatient rehab. He died of a heroin overdose 48 hours after he was discharged from rehab following a two-month stay.
"I don't know what happened in those 48 hours," Don Riebel said. "That will always be a mystery to me and my wife. It's been devastating to our family."
Colin had big plans, his father said.
"Colin didn't want to be a drug addict. He wanted to be a sports broadcaster. He had goals, dreams and aspirations."
Don and his wife, Bobbie Lynn, have channeled their grief into advocacy. They took part in a recent protest of a Bellmawr business busted in May for alleged drug trafficking.
"I need to spread awareness about the epidemic. My job now is to provide the education that he gave me before he passed away."
Matt Gray may be reached at mgray@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @MattGraySJT. Find the South Jersey Times on Facebook.