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

Dear First Lady Sarah Stitt,
I lost my husband, Tyler, to fentanyl poisoning on January 8, 2022.
Tyler was retired from the U.S. Army and was a 100% service-connected combat veteran.
When my husband came back from two tours in Iraq he was broken, both physically and
mentally. He was prescribed a litany of narcotics by the VA, and when he was abruptly
taken off them, he sought out his medicine on the street. Eventually, that turned into a fullblown
heroin addiction. Although Tyler did experience long periods of sobriety, he never
could seem to make it stick and would relapse for one reason or another. His last relapse
came after complete shoulder joint replacement surgery. After surgery, he was prescribed
opiate painkillers. After more than a year of habitual heroin use, he went to rehab in
Florida for six weeks. I finally had my husband back.
Eleven days after he came home from rehab, someone gave him fentanyl under the guise
of it being heroin. When I went to the store for 20 minutes he took the lethal dose, and I
found him unresponsive on the bathroom floor when I came home. In that moment, my
entire existence changed forever.
Tyler was my best friend. I know a lot of people say that about their spouse, but he really
was my best friend. We worked together. We lived together. We traveled together. We
laughed together. In fact, we laughed a lot because Tyler was very funny and quick-witted.
He was always the life of the party. If you met him once, you would remember him forever.
He always knew how to make you laugh, even at his own expense. You always knew you
were making memories as they happened when he was around.
He was very proud of his service to our country. He was a patriot, and he enjoyed giving
back, especially to Veterans. It’s where he felt the most useful. The world is just a little bit
darker without him in it.
When Tyler died, I lost my purpose for a long time. Now I have found it again as an
Ambassador for the Oklahoma Drug Epidemic Memorial Wall. If this Memorial Wall could
help save the life of just one person, one veteran, one husband, or one father, it would be
worth it.
Sincerely yours,
Cerina Boehrer - Tyler’s wife; forever 34
Ada, Oklahoma
749