ORLEANS COUNTY, N.Y. – The years have passed slowly for Tammi Bale.

Every day of the past two and a half years, since she lost her son, Robert, to a drug overdose, she’s haunted by the loss.

He died on March 10, 2016, just days before his 29^th birthday.

“When I asked me what he wanted for a present, all he demanded was socks from me, so I got him the socks and that was pretty much the last time I saw him alive,” she said.

She remembers where the overdose happened: off Winton Road in Rochester. She also remembers him as a hard worker who would give anyone the shirt off of his back.

“I know the situation isn’t getting any better and I know somebody else is going to die in eight minutes from now – somebody else is going to die from a heroin overdose,” said Bale.

Going through grief she found a way to turn sorrow into something useful, a sock drive, called “Just socks, Ma.”

Speaking about her son, Bale said, “He had stayed at the Open Door Mission briefly so I took it upon myself to take on this annual drive to donate socks to the open door mission and honor my son.”

Four drop off locations:

Galaxy Auto Parts

4974 W Ridge Rd,

Spencerport, NY 14559

TF Nail Salon & Spa

66 Market St,

Brockport, NY 14420

Gates Police Department

1605 Buffalo Rd,

Rochester, NY 14624

Coffee Connection at the Greenhouse Café

2271 E Main St,

Rochester, NY 14609

The drive requests new socks only and runs until November 19th.

Bale is hoping to deliver 1,000 pair the week of Thanksgiving.