POLAND TWP, Ohio – Teacher, football coach, and Poland Township Trustee Eric Ungaro is a voice for families who continue to struggle with the opioid epidemic.

His brother Sean died of an overdose in 2012, and he's also lost two of his uncles to drugs soon after he graduated high school.

When Ohio University Professors Daniel Skinner and Berkeley Franz reached out to Ungaro to share his perspective in their book “Not Far From Me, Stories of Opioids and Ohio,” the longtime Mahoning Valley resident was raw, real, and ready to “Stand Proud.”

• The opioid crisis has affected families across Ohio, some of them shared their stories in a new book by two Ohio University professors.  
• Poland Township Trustee Eric Ungaro who lost his brother and two uncles to drugs was interviewed for the book. 

“Involved with you know addicts or recovery for a lot of years, be it through my uncles or kids that I was coaching in the city at the time. A lot of minority kids when it was the crack epidemic and going onto my brother, now being in a suburban setting where you know you're seeing the demise of some kids and families. I think they said, wow, you've got something to tell here," says Ungaro. 

Ungaro, who's is the son of long-time Youngstown mayor Pat Ungaro, says his brother was the one who had everything and it was hard to tell at first what caused his life to spiral out of control—leading to his death at age 39. 

“He was the good looking one, worked at General Motors, had all kind of money, drove a Cadillac. So, you were juggling that, ok, is he just partying, or is there something really going on here?” says Ungaro. 

Eventually, he and his family discovered Sean’s trouble began after being prescribed Oxycontin after hernia surgery.

“Some people can take a couple, hang in there, get over their hernia and get on with life. If you're wired wrong, you know you take them, you like them, you start drinking with them, you start partying with them. Next thing you know, you're trapped,” says Ungaro. 

Seven years later, he and his family members still wonder what they could have done.

But at a certain point, Ungaro says, you have to find acceptance.

“You know I had to kind of come to some realization that I wasn't stopping it, no matter if I talk to him a million times or zero times,” says Ungaro. 

Ungaro remains very active in the community, sharing his personal tragedy with school students.

He's joined the region's Mental Health Board, as well as various groups that provide drug abuse and counseling services.

When it comes to the book, Ungaro says it's powerful due to the fact that its not just about statistics.

His hope moving forward is that society will not become desensitized to the opioid crisis.

“I just don't want society to get numb to it, like thinking that's getting better. We're getting better with treatment options, but it's still a major-major problem. Just cause you don't see it in the news every day as you did two-three years ago,” says Ungaro. 

The book “Not Far From Me” is currently available and sold through most major book retailers. 

It features 50 stories from 22 of Ohio's hardest-hit counties by the opioid crisis.