07/26/2026
We Need Your Help. Here’s Why.
Three years ago, after losing our beautiful daughter Marissa to fentanyl poisoning from a counterfeit pill, Mark and I made a promise.
We would spend the rest of our lives doing everything we could to prevent another family from experiencing the same heartbreak.
That promise became Marissa’s Voice Inc. - 501c3 Nonprofit Organization .
Since then, we’ve distributed naloxone throughout our community, provided fentanyl prevention education, attended countless community events, partnered with organizations across North Texas, and delivered food, water, clothing, hygiene products, and school supplies directly to families who need them most.
What many people don’t know is this…
When we created Marissa’s Voice, we unknowingly organized it as a private foundation instead of a public charity.
At the time, we simply didn’t know the difference.
Unfortunately, that IRS classification has prevented us from qualifying for many corporate giving and in-kind donation programs offered by companies like Walmart, Sam’s Club, Target, and others that primarily support public charities.
The good news is that we’re actively working to change our IRS classification to a public charity.
The difficult part is that these changes don’t happen overnight.
Until then…
We’ve continued our mission anyway.
Every case of bottled water.
Every box of snacks.
Every backpack.
Every pair of socks and underwear.
Every hygiene kit.
Every bracelet.
Every outreach table.
Every mile driven.
Every community event.
Almost all of it has been purchased by Mark and me, along with donations from a handful of incredibly generous supporters.
We’ve never wanted our inability to qualify for certain donation programs to become an excuse for not helping people.
So we’ve simply kept going.
But today, we’re asking for help.
❤️ Here’s what we need most right now:
🧦 New socks (all sizes)
🩲 New underwear (children and adults)
🎒 Backpacks and school supplies
🥫 Nonperishable food
💧 Bottled water
🧴 Toiletries and hygiene items
👕 New clothing
🍎 Healthy snacks
💳 Financial donations of any amount
Whether your gift is one package of socks, one case of water, one backpack, or a financial contribution, it truly makes a difference.
We’ve also made transparency a priority.
✅ Marissa’s Voice is an IRS-recognized 501(c)(3) nonprofit.
✅ Our IRS filings are publicly available through Candid.
✅ We’ve earned the Candid Gold Seal of Transparency.
✅ Every donation is used to support our mission and serve our community.
We don’t measure success by dollars.
We measure it by lives touched.
By families supported.
By conversations started.
By naloxone placed into someone’s hands before they ever need it.
By helping even one family avoid the pain we live with every single day.
If our mission speaks to your heart, we’d be honored if you’d stand beside us.
Please consider donating, sharing this post, or reaching out if your business, church, civic organization, or employer would like to partner with Marissa’s Voice.
Together, we can turn grief into hope, education into prevention, and compassion into action.
With heartfelt gratitude,
Amy C Brewer & Mark S. Garbade
Founders, Marissa’s Voice Inc. - 501c3 Nonprofit Organization . 💜
🌐 www.marissasvoice.org
“Together, we honor Marissa’s memory by saving lives and giving hope.”
