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Angela Kenneke’s life changed forever when her daughter Emily died from fentanyl poisoning at just 21 years old. In this powerful and deeply human conversation, Angela shares how her family’s experience with substance use disorder evolved from early warning signs in high school to the devastating moment they were preparing an intervention—only three days too late. Her story is not only one of loss, but of purpose, resilience, and a mission to prevent other families from facing the same tragedy.
Angela explains how stigma, misinformation, and the rapid spread of fake pills have created a dangerous environment for today’s youth. She describes how Emily unknowingly consumed heroin laced with fentanyl, and how this single moment of experimentation became fatal. Drawing from her background as a journalist and investigative reporter, Angela began searching for answers—leading her to create Emily’s Hope, a nonprofit dedicated to prevention, education, treatment scholarships, and community support.
A major part of Angela’s work is the Emily’s Hope K–12 substance use prevention curriculum, now implemented in six states and reaching more than 30,000 students. She outlines how the program uses age‑appropriate, science‑based lessons to teach children about healthy habits, trusted adults, brain development, emotional regulation, and the real risks of substances—including fentanyl‑laced counterfeit pills. Angela also discusses the organization’s upcoming fentanyl education toolkit, youth art initiatives, naloxone distribution, and treatment scholarships that have already saved lives.
This episode is a candid, compassionate look at the fentanyl crisis, the importance of early education, and the power of turning grief into action. Angela’s message to parents is clear: keep the conversation open, lead with love, and start early. Her work honors Emily’s memory while lighting the way forward for families everywhere.
Voiceover
The Addiction Podcast Point of no return.
Joanie Sigal
Angeli.Angeli.Angela Kaneke, thank you for being on the podcast today and sharing your story and the exciting things that you are working on.
Angela Kenneke
Oh, you're so welcome.Thank you for having me.
Joanie Sigal
Absolutely.Angela, tell us why, why we're talking to you, what.What addiction has to do with you and how it's formed, what you're doing today.
Angela Kenneke
You know, I think everybody out there has been touched by substance use disorder in some way.I know growing up, I had a grandfather who struggled with alcoholism, and I know it was a real embarrassment to my mom.And I didn't really understand alcohol or alcohol use disorder as a disease of the brain.My grandpa would tell me that, and he was actually a great leader in AA and was sober for most of my life.But I also got married and had children, and there was addiction on my husband's.My.My now ex husband's side of the family as well.And so I do think everybody has been touched in some way by this disease of the brain.I never thought it would impact me in the way that it did, but my oldest daughter, Emily, was a.She was rebelling in high school, started rebelling in high school.She'd just been such an amazing kid, such a joy, so talented, so energetic, so artistic, just an amazing kid.But in high school, I say that's when the trouble started, and she started rebelling and.And using substances was part of that rebellion, and that led to substance use disorder.We didn't really know everything about what was going on with her.She died from fentanyl poisoning at age 21, and that was a shock to us.We were in the process of getting ready to hold an intervention because we knew something was terribly wrong.We were three days away from holding an intervention when she died.And this was eight years ago, which is probably, you know, why I can talk about.I talk about it, actually every day.That's why I can talk about it the way I do.But I formed a charity to try to do what I can to reduce this problem, to prevent it from happening to other families.And I've been working hard at that ever since.It's called Emily's Hope.
Joanie Sigal
Well, as I said before we got on the podcast, being a mother and a grandmother, I am so very sorry for your loss.It is.It happens to way too many mothers and fathers and siblings, and I. I'm really sorry.
Angela Kenneke
Thank you.I. I thought that I could just stop so many of these deaths just by going public and talking about it.Eight years ago, when this happened.Obviously, that's not the case.We saw a big spike in overdose and fentanyl poisoning deaths.Now they are going down nationwide, not in my state, but nationwide.They're going down.Those deaths.However, 68,000 people dying a year is way too many people dying a year from overdose and fentanyl poisoning.And that doesn't even include all the people that die from complications from alcohol and drugs, you know, from other means, the heart attack, liver disease, those kinds of things.So, I mean, it's a huge problem.It causes so many deaths and so much suffering.And really what we're doing is to try to prevent it and to help those who are suffering.
Joanie Sigal
And I think what you're doing is phenomenal.And we'll talk about education because we agree that education is probably the most important thing we can focus on.But the fact that you're doing a podcast, you have your foundation, we do a podcast.There are other podcasts.We've had a couple people on recently doing podcasts.We are shedd a light on it.It's going to take.It really is going to take not a village, but a whole nation to address this and really put an end to it.But what we can do and what you're doing is to bring attention to it and point it out.So I do appreciate that, but I want to hear about education and the education materials that you use and how.How did that come about?
Angela Kenneke
Well, well, you know, I think one of the biggest barriers is stigma.And so I think using a scientific approach is really important.And after my daughter died, I started thinking a lot about one thing.She died from ingesting or using what she thought was heroin, but it contained fentanyl.She had gone from marijuana to opioids.Xanax, marijuana and Xanax pills.Kids are very comfortable with pills.So she had gone from those things to heroin.And I didn't know that that's why we were working on this intervention.We knew something was terribly wrong.But she never used meth, ever.And I started really thinking about what was the reason why.And when she was in third grade, I worked for my a lifetime career as a broadcaster and investigative reporter and tv.And I worked for a TV station.And when she was in third grade, I did a special on meth.Methamphetamine.We showed the before and after pictures of people who used meth.You probably remember seeing those.We talked to people whose lives had been ruined by Met, people who had died from meth.And that was back when they were making meth in you know, bottles or in trailer homes and things like that.Now we have powerful meth coming up from Mexico.But she was so impacted by that special.She watched me produce when I was working in television.I had her watch it in third grade because even though it may have been more adult oriented, I thought it was so important that she was had this bias against meth.But what she didn't get was the whole message.And so I started talking to other people.I started talking to educators and doctors, and I brought this group of people around me and they all agreed we have to start talking to kids at a younger age.And we did a literature review, we did a review of scientific papers and all the studies show you have to start young with kids.And so we started this program.It started as a pilot, but we developed our Emily's Hope substance use prevention curriculum.And it goes K through 12 grade.But we started developing it for the elementary school level.And we are now evidence based, K through 5, which took years by the way of studying and implementing.And our curriculum has been implemented in six states.30,000 Students have received it.And we have entire states now who are taking it and offering it for free.There's a lot of states that require this kind of curriculum.They have laws and others don't, but they should still offer it.And so we're working really hard to get it into as many schools as possible.And it's not, it's not like dare.It's very different.My daughter was the poster child for dare.She read her essay in dare.I think a lot of people are familiar with that five or six week program comes in in about fifth grade.But this is consistent and it's lessons and age appropriate lessons.So we talk to kindergarteners about healthy habits, about their big emotions.Who's a trusted adult?We know kindergarteners have gotten into fentanyl laced gummies and baggies.In Pennsylvania, they had to treat kindergarteners for fentanyl overdose.And they lived, thank God.But I mean, they have to learn not to take anything from anybody.And they have to learn who their trusted adult is.And so we start on that, but it's a very scientific approach.So we, by third grade, we're teaching kids how the brain works, what substances do to the brain, what substance use disorder is.And then we also have pair that with lessons about pressures and emotions and things like that.So we cover the entire gamut.
Joanie Sigal
I love that.And what I also love is when you talked about your daughter watching the documentary that you did about meth and the fact that she then never got into meth.See, that's what I think.I think that if we give children, we don't just say, say no, it's bad.Drugs are bad.Children are smarter than that.And that if we give them the full information and also give them solutions like know who you can trust and who you can take something from candy or something.I feel like most children will do it.They will, they will learn from it and they will follow it.Children are not stupid.Right.
Angela Kenneke
The studies show that is true that, that if you start at a young age teaching kids, you can make such a big difference.For every dollar spent on prevention, you save like 14 to $65 on the back end when it comes to like treatment for this disease.And so we know that we have to have these prevention plans and they have to be comprehensive, they have to be evidence based, they have to be age appropriate.And we are doing all of that.And I wish every school would make this a priority because you can teach kids about everything else, but if you don't teach them about this, you lose them and you lose this potential to the world.I mean, not just from death.Death obviously is a huge risk for kids these days and young people and anybody who's using substances, not just to death.I'm talking about just their potential to live up to their potential to what they have to offer their gifts, they have to offer the world.So to me, this is one of the most important things any school, any parent, any organization can do.
Joanie Sigal
I agree.I completely agree.Are your materials available to parents?Is it something they can go to a website and they can purchase or get.How does that work?
Angela Kenneke
Yes, they could go to emilyshope charity or emilyshopedu.org is our education website.We do have all of our, we have a, our lessons, have children's books that accompany them.And then when we get into the things 5th through middle school, 5th through 8th grade, we have graphic novels or comics for kids, we have animations and things like that.But parents can buy the books if they'd like to do that.We offer our curriculum for homeschooling, that kind of thing.And then we're also coming out with a fentanyl toolkit.Right now it's will be only be available for people in my state.But after we finish that program, we're going to be offering it nationwide.And that includes just an entire kit for anybody can, that anybody can use that has conversation starters, games, all kinds of different things, activities in it to teach kids about the dangers of fentanyl.And fake pills.
Joanie Sigal
Got it.Wow.That.I've never heard of that before.That's.
Voiceover
Well, because nobody else is doing it.This is our unique idea, and we are putting it out there right within the next year.
Joanie Sigal
So.And it's so important because, you know, we've had parents, other parents who have lost their kids to fentanyl poisoning.And a lot of these are kids that were not doing drugs who.
Angela Kenneke
Experimentation.
Joanie Sigal
Exactly.Who bought a pill that they thought was Xanax off of Snapchat or TikTok and then found.And then they died because it was laced with fentanyl.And what a lot of parents run into is that, you know, people say, oh, our officials say your child was an addict.No, no, no, no, no.Their child was education.Yeah.Specifically, my child was fentanyl.Yeah.Is the right thing to do.Sorry.Go ahead.
Angela Kenneke
Right.I'm sorry.My child was poisoned as well, even though she was using substances.And obviously we could tell by her behavior that something was wrong.And.And most likely she did suffer from substance use disorder, but she didn't know she was getting fentanyl.So that is a poisoning.
Joanie Sigal
Right.
Angela Kenneke
And you're right.So many kids are so comfortable with taking pills these days.It used to be about 70% of the pills were fake that they are laced with fentanyl.70% Of the pills out there being sold on the black market were laced with fentanyl.Then it was down to about 50%.Now the DEA is saying about 30% of those pills are fake.But even so, that's, you know, a great chance that your kid could get one.So experimenting with drugs we used to see as a rite of passage, I think, sometimes.Oh, you know, that's just what kids do.I heard a lot when I was dealing with Emily.I had a sister who was kind of wild back in the day, and then she was okay.She.And people will outgrow those behaviors, too, and they'll outgrow addictions a lot of times.But there is no outgrowing anything when you have this dangerous substance on the illicit market.And so we've got to teach our kids not to ever take anything and not to trust that this is an actual prescription pill if they got it from a friend or they got it off Snapchat, because chances are it's not.
Joanie Sigal
And I.And I bring the analogy up, and I've done it over and over again, and people probably get tired of me hearing it, but it's Russian roulette.It's really.
Angela Kenneke
Yes.And I don't think I don't think kids know what Russian roulette is, necessarily.You and I know, I know, but it is.
Joanie Sigal
But I explain it.
Angela Kenneke
You know, it's a game of chance, Right?It's a game of chance.
Joanie Sigal
It's a game of chance where if you make the wrong choice, you die.
Angela Kenneke
Right.And when I talk to kids and big assemblies and things like that, I tell them, and if you have a friend who's experimenting with drugs and you're worried about them, you.You cannot keep that a secret because they are playing this horrible game of chance, and the next time they use, they could die.And you have to tell a trusted adult about that.You, you, you.I mean, just think of what you'd have to live with if you didn't.
Joanie Sigal
Yep.Yep.So you're in how many schools did you say?
Angela Kenneke
Well, we're in six states.We've been before.30,000 Students and in those states.And so we're hoping to expand to even more schools this school year.And we continue just to plug away at this because we really feel that it's such an important thing.
Joanie Sigal
I think that's huge.I think it's absolutely huge.Are you also connected up with other fentanyl awareness organizations in terms of what you're going to be delivering in terms of fentanyl education?
Angela Kenneke
I mean, we try to work hand in hand with every organization who will work with us.I do believe that we, or not, working in silos.I talked to so many people on my podcast who have started organizations.You know, I started mine back in February of 2019, before everybody was had, starting an organization who lost someone, like, in the way I did.But I always say it's going to take all of us joining hands together, working together to try to curb this problem.I don't know.As long as there's a demand, there's going to be a supply.And so this is really what we have to focus on.Of course, at Emily's Hope, we do a lot of other things, too, besides prevention.We work a lot with youth, and we have a youth art showcase, and we have all kinds of prevention efforts that we're doing in addition to the curriculum.
Joanie Sigal
The youth art showcase.I like that.Tell me about that.
Angela Kenneke
Well, my daughter Emily was an artist, and so a lot of what we do at our charity revolves around art.We preserve her art.We have an art show and auction fundraiser every year where we show her art and we auction off the work of other artists and nationally, locally, regionally.And then we also incorporate art into our youth prevention Programs, our Youth Prevention Coalition.So we have art workshops and then we have a youth art showcase with themes about healthy living, drug and alcohol free living.We have a different theme every year, but it's really to promote this message that you want to stay substance free, you want to have a healthy life.And that has been a really big success.And I love using her art in everything that we do.
Joanie Sigal
I love that, and I know she appreciates it, too.So it's just for people listening.So the website is emilyshopedu.org that's for the education curriculum.Education curriculum.
Angela Kenneke
You can also get to anything from our general website, emilyshope Charity.So up at the top, we have links to where our naloxone is available, we have links to our education curriculum, and we have links to our memorial site, which is called More than Just a Number of.We encourage anyone to share their story of a loved one.They've lost two substances there.
Joanie Sigal
Great.And we will put those websites in the show.Notes.Angela, thank you for.Thank you for turning your grief into something that is saving lives.And I understand that you may not know all the lives you save.We don't know the lives that we save, but I know that we are and you are as well.
Angela Kenneke
So thank you.I. I really feel that it has been a place for me to put my grief and to work through my grief and to take the focus off myself and to put it on others.And I think that is one of the most powerful things we can do as human beings and a way for us to maintain our own mental health through tragedy.And I have been so grateful to hear from a lot of people who've received.We've given out $550,000 in treatment scholarships at a treatment center that is affiliated with a health care system.So they do medically assisted treatment.And I hear from those people.I hear from people who've received our naloxone, whose lives have been saved by our naloxone.So we don't have a lot of good data on that because it's hard to collect.But I've heard so many anecdotal stories of lives being saved by that.And we know that our prevention efforts will save lives in the future.And that has been through all of this tragedy.I would, of course, I would take my daughter back in a second and do none of it.Right?Do none of it.But at least I've been able to do something with what seems like such a senseless death, like it didn't have to happen.We should have been able to get her that intervention.We should have been able to get her help.We were not able to do that because of fentanyl.But now I'm able to help other people the best I can, along with so many other people that have come alongside me.I'm not doing any of this alone.I have a wonderful team of people.We have volunteers, I have family that have lended their support to this cause.And I really couldn't do it without all of them.
Joanie Sigal
I love that.Angela, if you had just one last message or words of wisdom for parents listening who either know their child is suffering or suspects it, maybe something you would recommend that they do.
Angela Kenneke
You know, I wish there were really easy answers out there.If I had all the answers, my daughter would still be alive, right?I'm a journalist.I did research.I took her to all kinds of counselors and tried to get her treatment as a teenager and did all these things to try to prevent the worst from happening.Yet the worst happened.All I can say is keep the conversation open.Approach your child always from a standpoint of love.I can tell you from experience that anger and punishment doesn't work, doesn't work in these situations.You have to always approach them from a standpoint of love.Keep the conversation open.Keep your heart open.You can still set boundaries, but start these conversations as young as possible as well.
Joanie Sigal
Thank you.Thank you, Angela.
Angela Kenneke
You're welcome.
Voiceover
You have been listening to the Addiction Podcast, Point of no return.For more information, reach out to us on Facebook or go to www.theaddictionpodcast.com.Our email is theaddictionpodcast@yahoo.com