USA First Lady Dr. Jill Biden and Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff

Dear First Lady Teresa Little,
I am an ambassador for the Drug Epidemic Memorial Wall. My first-born son was taken,
Matthew, on August 3, 2022, at the age of forever 34. He was found by a stranger a block
away from the Sober house he was living in. We were not notified until August 6th. Matthew
died from fentanyl poisoning. He was found with a partial M30 which was laced with fentanyl.
His death was a complete shock. He had been sober for over a year and the night before we
were talking about our plans about rebuilding our business and buying a home and how badly
he wanted to rebuild his relationship with the love of his life and 4 girls.
Matthew was a hardworking man, a loving dad, an awesome brother, fantastic uncle and the
best son ever. He made me proud to be his mom. Everyone Matthew met only had positive
things to say about him. I miss him so much, his craziness, his smile, and the way he was
always there taking care of me. I am not the only one that misses him. His daughters Layla 7,
Adalea 4, Paisley 10 and stepdaughter, Lauren 12. Their lives were turned upside down and a
year later they are still having nightmares. His death created a loss for more than our family,
but to his friends, or as they said, “brothers and sisters from another mother” and his coworkers.
There are no descriptors for the loss his brothers, sisters, nieces, nephews, aunts,
uncles and children are experiencing. The grief at times is unspeakable, unbearable and
unstoppable. We moved to Idaho in 2005 from Portland Oregon. Thinking we were moving to
a safer place. Little did we know.
Matthew’s drug addiction spans almost 14 years. It all began with a major knee surgery and
the doctors at the time were prescribing opioids for pain with no real idea of the addictive
nature of the drugs. He would get sober and be doing great then all of a sudden, he was using
again. Fentanyl is not only a danger to opioid addicts but to anyone who uses any drug bought
on the street.
Would you assist us in finding a permanent location for a Drug Epidemic Memorial Wall within
our Capitol? We have created two memorial walls. I am including Matthew’s frame, below.
These digital walls update automatically. We would also like the photos displayed in hard copy
format. The number of names on the wall is growing daily.
We would like our loved ones to be treated like victims. They were all victims of Purdue
Pharma (an American cartel) and many others. Now, they are victims of the Chinese criminal
networks and the Mexican Cartels. We are using the word “drugism” for the prejudice toward
drug users.
Idaho families would love to meet with you and work together to prevent this from happening
ever again.
Sincerely,
Marla Martenka, mother of Matthew Parker Forever34
Coeur D Alene Idaho
1059