MANSFIELD — Everything about that day was normal until he picked up the ringing phone in the afternoon and his mother told him the news.
It was his cousin; he was found dead in his apartment earlier that day.
“Nobody knew what had really happened. We didn’t know if it was drugs or something else,” former Mansfield resident Chad Spring said, hinting at the possibility of suicide.
Although Spring and his cousin weren’t close, he never knew of any encounters with the law or drug abuse.
“He was a pretty quiet and reserved guy,” Spring remembered.
They had spent family gatherings and holidays together, but otherwise did not keep in touch. After the call, Spring and his family members raced through scenarios that could have made matters different.
An autopsy revealed later that he had died from a heroin overdose.
“At least for me, and I’m sure other family members, finding out it was not suicide did offer some sort of relief,” Spring said.
Not that he really believed it was suicide. Six months prior to his death, Spring said his cousin planned on attending a trade school to learn how to operate heavy machines.
The 29-year-old had worked in grocery stores prior to applying to a trade school.
“That’s kind of why it was so shocking, it seemed like he had this forward plan,” Spring said.
But the biggest part of his cousin’s death was the appearance that he was not struggling with drugs. He was not an addict, so the news was especially troubling.
“We all asked each other if there were any signs that people were ignoring. To our knowledge, there weren’t any signs. We didn’t know if this incident had been his fiftieth time or his first. No one in the family really knows that,” he said.
Honoring a senseless death
“I tend to run a lot,” Spring said.
So when Spring learned that the Spherion Mid Ohio 13er was meant to raise funds to help fight against drug and alcohol abuse, he registered. The Denver-based Toshiba sales manager found himself back in town for last year’s event and gladly ran it.
He finished eighth overall with a time of 1:37. Although he wishes he could participate in Saturday’s race, his work schedule, which has him traveling to the Hawaii and Colorado two to three days per week, would not allow it.
But he won’t stop there. Just last weekend he completed the Breckenridge Spartan Race and is currently training for its championship event in February 2017. He’s also completed around five Tough Mudder obstacle races and two full marathons.
The 13er was special though.
“It helped me cope in a way, and it gave me a way to honor my cousin,” Spring said of last year’s half marathon. “For me, it was knowing that here’s this event, local to Mansfield, a grassroots effort. Key people are trying to make a difference and be public about this problem.
“Overdoses are plaguing Mansfield and so many other cities. Services are out there. And these overdoses don’t effect just the addicted drug users. It can affect those that try it once — and that can be too much.”
He hopes his cousin’s story can inspire those who are contemplating using for the first time.
“Reach out to anybody they can trust and don’t go down that rabbit hole. It doesn’t matter the circumstance, (using drugs) doesn’t affect just their lives. We need to change the tide of the heroin epidemic,” he said.
The Spherion Mid Ohio 13er is scheduled for Saturday, Sept. 3 at 8 a.m. Registration will remain open up until race time. Visit the website for more information.
