GREELEY, Colo. (KDVR) — A Greeley family is sharing their story in hopes of saving lives and steering kids away from the danger of illicit fentanyl.

Brendan Hogan said his 16-year-old daughter, Jaydynn Hogan, died two years ago after taking a sleeping pill she didn’t know was laced with fentanyl.

“She went to sleep and didn’t wake up,” Brendan said. 

Kimberly Hogan, Jaydynn’s stepmom, said it was something they never expected.

“We still think she’s coming back and going to walk in that door, but she’s not. So we have to fight for her and be her voice, because hers was taken away from her,” Kimberly said.

‘Is trying worth dying?’

The family started a nonprofit called Jaydynn’s Light with a mission to educate about the dangers of fentanyl and save lives.

“We started a nonprofit with the goal of raising awareness for fentanyl, getting relevant drug information back into schools and supporting families that have lost loved ones to fentanyl,” Brendan said.

He said they’re focused on spreading an important message: “Is trying worth dying?”

The family of Jaydynn Hogan started a nonprofit called Jaydynn’s Light with a mission to raise awareness of the dangers of fentanyl and save lives. (KDVR)

It’s a message he said is now up on billboards across northern Colorado and Wyoming.  

“It’s important to us that they know that there is no experimentation,” Brendan said. “If you don’t have it given to you by a doctor, you don’t take it.”

Through the nonprofit, Brendan said they also make life-saving kits equipped with Kloxxado and Narcan, two types of the opioid overdose treatment drug naloxone.

“We don’t want anyone else to feel what we felt and not have the knowledge or information or even know what it is,” Kimberly said. “Jaydynn’s Light represents who she was, her personality — spunky, sassy, full of light, little social butterfly — and we wanted to honor her in any way we can.”

‘Light up the Night’ with Jaydynn’s Light

On Saturday, Aug. 25, hundreds of luminaires will light up the area for their second Light up the Night event to spread awareness about the dangers of fentanyl and honor those who have died.

This year’s Light up the Night event will take place at the University Charter School football stadium in Greeley starting at 5 p.m. Saturday. People can purchase luminaries for $5, which will be displayed at the event.

“We look at them as beacons of hope,” Brendan said. “It helps guide people that are lost.”