Fentanyl is the leading cause of preventable deaths for all Americans age 18-45. We’re going to change that.

Fentanyl is the leading cause of preventable deaths for all Americans age 18-45. We’re going to change that.

BirdieLight saves lives by educating young people about the danger of unintentional fentanyl ingestion, and by empowering them with tools to detect fentanyl before they ingest.

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BirdieLight saves lives by educating young people about the danger of unintentional fentanyl ingestion, and by empowering them with tools to detect fentanyl before they ingest.

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Who We Are icon

Who Are We?


A personal tragedy brought the organization to life. Learn more about the strong team behind this vision, and the story that inspired it.

What is Fentanyl?


Fentanyl is a deadly substance, and is currently found in more unexpected drugs than ever before. Let’s teach to prevent death.

Why are We Doing This?


Death by unknown fentanyl ingestion is at an all time high. The time to educate and distribute resources is now.

All for Eli.

In March 2021, our beloved Eli Weinstock, a sophomore at American University in Washington D.C., tragically passed away at 20 from unintentional fentanyl ingestion. Known for his infectious smile and love for hip-hop and snowboarding, Eli had no idea the substance he took contained deadly fentanyl. He cherished his life deeply and had no intention of taking such a risk.

His story is sadly not unique. Many other young people face similar fates due to the alarming rise of fentanyl in substances. In response to this heartbreaking loss, BirdieLight aims to honor Eli’s memory by spreading fentanyl education and access to harm reduction tools such as fentanyl test strips and Narcan among high school and college students across America.

The True Cost of Fentanyl

Fentanyl fuels opioid addiction, when it is not killing people. The true cost of fentanyl will be evident for generations to come; we have lost an entire segment of our population due to this poison. It is hard to find someone not touched somehow by this public health crisis.

BirdieLight empowers young people: first, think hard about whether or not to ingest any substance that may be poisoned with fentanyl, and second, if you opt to move forward with ingestion, use a tool –a test strip—to confirm the substance does not contain fentanyl.

“This is a crisis of an unimaginable size. More people are dying annually than died at the height of the AIDS epidemic. More Americans died from fentanyl overdose in 2020 than died in the Vietnam War. This synthetic opioid is our new enemy, and it’s time our young people learn how to fight.”

– Beth Weinstock M.D., Eli’s Mother

We come to you. We are here to educate you, your kids, your community about the dangers of fentanyl.

Our goal is for you to know where fentanyl is found and how to avoid it. Contact us for an educational session for your classroom, school, church group, fraternity/sorority, parent group. Any place that more than two people gather, we will talk about fentanyl.

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Disclaimer


The information on this website is not intended as medical advice; Dr. Weinstock is a physician but not YOUR physician. While we advocate for the life-saving potential of tools such as fentanyl test strips and naloxone, BirdieLight is not the manufacturer of these tools, and no tool is 100% accurate all the time. BirdieLight makes no representations that these tools are 100% accurate; any reliance you place on them is strictly at your own risk. Please keep in mind that while fentanyl test strips are a powerful detection tool for the potentially-lethal presence of fentanyl in illegal pills and powder, the strips have been determined to be 92-96% sensitive in detecting fentanyl. Remember, never use any substance when you are alone (tell a friend you are taking something!) and that friend should always know where the naloxone (Narcan) is.