How can you grieve someone you've never met? I spent the Christmas of 2009 beside my mother's upside down hospital bed, admiring a small plastic tree decorated with ornaments from her nurses. Four-year-old me had been eagerly awaiting two little brothers, Gavin and Jayden. Both weighing merely one pound, only twenty three weeks old. Of course, I didn't understand at the time that babies can come into the world too soon, I was simply excited to be a big sister. I admired them through the glass of the NICU incubators, tiny bodies covered in tubes, wires, and stickers. I remember getting to hold them once, draped in a hospital gown. Cradling them in my arms, I realized how fragile they were. The amount of joy that filled me was unmatched. How lucky I was to have two little brothers? Unfortunately, that was the last time I got to hold Jayden. Jayden contracted H1N1, a type of influenza A. His premature immune system was nowhere near strong enough to fight off the virus. On March 31st, 2010, he stopped fighting. My dad told me once, the hardest thing he has ever had to do was to tell his four-year-old daughter that her little brother died. Some could argue I was too young to understand, too young to feel the pain, but I knew what happened. This has always caused an extreme feeling of guilt in my life. Some people lose their siblings after spending an entire childhood with them. For a long time, I felt unworthy of grieving the loss of my brother because of this. I would try to think- which is worse, losing someone after creating a million memories with them, or never even having the opportunity to create memories at all? As I got older, I stopped asking myself this. I realized that grief is valid no matter the situation and that it was never about me, it was about honoring Jayden. Despite my loss, I am incredibly lucky to have my brother, Gavin. I know that a piece of Jayden is always with us, in him. I plan to continue Jayden's legacy by becoming a nurse. I have had a passion for nursing since I was very young and I know I can carry him with me by healing others. I have even considered working in the NICU myself. Although it may be tough at first, I believe it would be an amazing tribute to him.

My name is Olivia Tennant, I'm 17, and I'm from a small town in West Virginia. As many people know, West Virginia has had a drug problem for a long time. According to the CDC, in 2020, 81.4 per every 100,000 residents died from an overdose in West Virginia. In 2021, about 1.783 million people were living in West Virginia. So you can imagine how deeply we are affected by this disorder. In 2018, West Virginia created a youth substance abuse prevention program called Game Changer. Game Changer is a student-led organization that works with schools and the community to encourage children to make healthy choices about alcohol, drugs, and other substances. It was recently implemented in a handful of schools. My small school of just 350 students (6-12) was the second school to take up this initiative. We started by gathering in our classrooms and watching a video called "One Pill Can Kill". The short film was about the growing fentanyl crisis and it included middle and high school students from around the state law enforcement, EMS, and even a former drug dealer. As someone studying to be an EMT, this made me realize I need to gain as much knowledge as I can about substance abuse, so I can make a difference. The video was more than informative and gave me a better sense of how serious this is, so when they allowed us to apply to be a Game Changer peer leader, I quickly took the opportunity. I ended up getting selected and I was very happy to be part of such a promising program. Following our admission, we signed a document and promised to not use any substances during our time as Game Changer peer leaders. We then met a former drug addict turned educator from Boston named Mr. G and he gave us a crash course on common drugs, peer pressure, false presumptions of "social norms", and a little pathophysiology of substance abuse. We also practiced skits to convey our messages to our middle school which we performed and then took the students' questions. We also opened our auditorium to our community and introduced ourselves and why we choose to not use chemicals. Then, we presented the “One Pill Can Kill” video. Our group also hosted an LSIC (Local School Improvement Council) meeting. Recently, we had a meeting with the two other schools involved and United States Senator, Joe Manchin at the Game Changer Headquarters in Fairmont, WV. This organization has been such an amazing experience and I'm so excited to see the growth and impact it's going to have on our state. I've already began educating others on substance abuse including our community, and middle school. We plan to talk to elementary schools as well. But I will continue to gain knowledge, educate others, and make a difference through my organization and my EMS journey. I understand that as a medical provider, substance abuse is a huge part of healthcare. My goal is to learn as much as I can and help people through medical treatment and advocacy against substance abuse.