Cindy is my December Fearless Female and very well deserved. She is a strong woman and so positive. I can't even imagine how she feels and hope I never have to.
I did Alexis, her daughter's, senior pictures in 2010 along with some family shots.
It was cold, windy, and rainy. We would have to sit in the car to get warm and dry. And wait for a chance to shoot. I was determined since they drove from Hazel Green to Guntersville. She just sat in the car with me and talked like she had known me for years.
Below is Cindy's beautiful words.
"Happy December! I
have been asked to participate in “Fearless Females”, to tell my story and to
represent strong, fearless, empowered women.
I’m afraid I lack all of these qualities BUT I can do all things through
Christ who strengthens me. This is my
story.
My name is Cindy League and I lost my daughter Alexis to a
drug overdose July 22, 2015. She was 23
years old. Words cannot begin to describe the sorrow that followed after she
passed. How my heart continued to beat
in my chest is something I will never understand. I didn’t talk publicly about what happened to
her for fear of being judged as a bad parent or her as a bad person. About a
year after her death, Alexis’ close friends told me about the End Heroin Walk
sponsored by Not One More Alabama. The
walk was to inform the public about the severe problem of heroin in our state,
educate families on how to get help for addicts, and to support the grieving
families who had lost a loved one to this horrific disease.
Before my daughter’s death, I remember praying to God to
take the burden of addiction off of Alexis, pleading with Him to give it to me
instead because she just wasn’t strong enough to fight the demon. Begging the Lord to let her be happy, and
healthy, and loved. He did answer ALL of these prayers, just not the way I had
expected! God released Alexis from her
prison of addiction, and she is now happy, and healthy, and loved more than my
heart can comprehend! Now it was time for me to help others. I decided it was time to step out of my
“grief bubble” and share my most heart wrenching story in hopes of keeping my
daughter’s memory alive, taking away the stigma of who people think drug
addicts are, and letting other families know that they are not alone in their
grief and pain.
When I notified friends and family about my decision to
participate in the End Heroin Walk, the response was overwhelming! Focusing on my own grief blinded me to the
grief that was being experienced by ALL that love her. As an army, we attended the walk with 60+
people wearing hot pink t-shirts in her honor and thus #TeamAlexis was
born! With love and support, I started
talking to the local news media, and with encouragement from Not One More Alabama,
I was honored to participate in the FaceBook live talk on Drug Overdose
Awareness Day. I have befriended many, many families that are experiencing a
living nightmare and do my best to offer love and support with their
struggles.
I don’t feel like a “Fearless Female”. I feel like a mom that made a promise to God
to do everything within my power to fight the epidemic of addiction. My
hope in telling Alexis’ story is to save a life!"
