From Danielle E. Olson – Founder, President & CEO:

The easiest way to explain the story behind The Lisa Michelle Memorial Fund is to tell you about my personal experience.

For as long as I can remember, my mom was addicted to prescription medication. Her addiction got so bad that, by the time I was a senior in high school, she had checked herself into the mental ward of our local hospital and put herself on suicide watch. Unfortunately, each time she spent trying to get better was lost and addiction continued to consume her.

I desperately wanted her to get better, but couldn’t seem to motivate her to take the necessary steps to do so. Then on September 20, 2008 (while I was a sophomore at Woodbury University) I was told that my mom passed away due to prolonged use of prescription drugs. This was one of the most devastating days of mine and my sibling’s lives. My youngest sister was only four years old at the time.

When I was growing up, never did I imagine not having my mom with me through my entire adult life. I was 19 years old when she passed and there are so many things I wish I could have said to her and so many things I wish she could have been a part of. She never met my wonderful husband or her two beautiful nieces (my brother’s children). She also never got to see her four year old daughter grow up (my youngest sister whose now 19 years old).

Even though my mom struggled with addiction, she was still a loving mother.  She would never go a day without saying she loved us and always supported everything we wanted to do.  I could have told her I wanted to build a rocket and she would have been cheering me on from the sidelines.

I know that she wanted more for us than what she was able to give and she knew that her children would go on to do great things.  Her belief in us is part of the reason why I push myself for more.

The grief, regret, and guilt I feel never truly goes away, even after 15 years of her not being here. Those of you that have gone through this type of loss know what I’m talking about and that’s why I started this organization. I wanted to give students a chance to share their story with others who have gone through the same thing and offer some financial help as well. It’s hard to lose a parent no matter how they left us, but it’s a different kind of pain and grief when your parent dies from their addiction.

The Lisa Michelle Memorial Fund has been a dream of mine for a long time and I’m so glad I have made it a reality. I hope that we can provide as much support as we can to students who have also lost a parent/guardian, grandparent, sibling, or spouse to substance abuse and in some way help them cope with their loss.

As a final note, none of this would be possible without your support, so thank you from The LMM Fund team!

Sincerely,

Danielle E. Olson

Founder, President & CEO