About Us

Mother. Mourner. Survivor. Servant. Warrior.

Perla has dedicated over 20 years of her life to serving her community in various roles, including street outreach, crisis counseling, educator, disaster relief and as a mental health specialist. But her most important mission in life was to nurture and guide her beautiful son, Elijah. That goal was ripped from her on September 16, 2020 when her only child was handed a pharmaceutically disguised pain pill made of pure Fentanyl. He was deceived by someone he trusted. As his mother, Perla has since dedicated herself to saving lives, sharing her son's story, and providing educational services, community resources, and support to families impacted by the fentanyl crisis. Her most successful approach to community work has been focused on drug prevention, education, and early intervention.

At Project Eli, our mission is to raise awareness about the dangers of illicit fentanyl and provide education, resources, and support to those who are affected by this crisis. Our goal is to prevent further harm and save lives through a variety of initiatives, including:

- Community outreach and education programs

- Distribution of naloxone, a life-saving medication that can reverse an opioid overdose

- Support for individuals and families affected by fentanyl

- Advocacy and policy initiatives to increase access to treatment and prevent death

Fentanyl is an ominous word. The media broadcasts it in connection to the opioid crisis. It sounds nefarious but it still seems distant. Until it becomes personal.

My son Daniel had a heart of gold. He had dreams, big dreams.  He wanted to become a businessman with goals to fund world missions.  His desire was to help others who struggled and hoped they would come to know the love of God.

My son was raised in Los Alamitos CA, where he attended school and excelled in academics and sports. He loved basketball, composing music, and singing. During my son’s junior year in high school, I noticed a change in his mood.  He seemed withdrawn and appeared to lose interest in all the things he once enjoyed. He struggled with anxiety and insomnia and I was at a loss to help him.  So, I took him to a psychiatrist and, shortly after, he began regular visits to a therapist. At 17, he was prescribed medication to help with anxiety, insomnia and depression.

Daniel did not like the idea of taking pills and was concerned with the social stigma that accompanied it. But after a few months, he started to improve, and the doctor suggested taking him off the medication to see how he did.  My son was thrilled. However, after a few months, the symptoms returned, worse than ever. But he didn’t want to see the therapist again. He’d say, “I’m not crazy, Mom. Please stop trying to force this.”  

But Daniel continued to struggle and eventually turned to marijuana. He said it helped him sleep. But I couldn’t allow this kind of self-medicating behavior in our home and warned him I would know because of the smell.

While competing in track and field, he met kids who were open about taking Xanax. Xanax use was popularized in music and it was easily accessible in our Rossmoor community. Things that were once stigmatized had become popular through the culture and became a youngster pastime. My son actually shared with me his thoughts on the practice. He thought Xanax was ok. He said it mellowed him out and besides, he wasn’t hurting anyone. He thought it was safe because his doctor had once prescribed it and he could finally sleep at night.

But he became addicted. It caught us off guard, how fast he became addicted. Daniel agreed to get help. During this treatment, the therapist found the root cause of his pain. My son revealed that he had been abused by a trusted paternal family member. The man is a teacher and professor, but Daniel decided not to confront his perpetrator at this time. His goal was to heal and strengthen his relationship with God.  I respected his decision but privately hoped justice would be served one day.

My son completed his treatment program in July 2020, and despite fear of Covid, he found a job and pursued college. He was doing well, and I was so proud of him.  He started complaining about insomnia again and reached out to his doctor for help. Because of his prior addiction, the doctor was reluctant to prescribe medication and encouraged him to try the holistic approach. He tried exercise, relaxing music, and meditation.  Nothing seemed to work.  

On Snapchat, he was referred by a friend to a young man who was selling what appeared to be pharmaceutical grade pain medications. On September 15th, my son asked to buy what he thought was prescription-grade Percocet. It was not. It was pure fentanyl, a lethal dose.  My beautiful son died that night.  He was deceived by someone who seemed trustworthy. One pill killed him. Fentanyl seems distant till it becomes personal and it kills.  

Project Eli educates parents, young adults and teens through Elijah’s story and directs them to community resources. Based in Orange County CA, Project Eli has been invited to speak at local schools, recovery homes and universities addressing students and parents on the deceptive ways Fentanyl kills using Eli’s, tragedy and accounts from other grieving families. 

Project Eli has advocated for legislative change across the nation, starting local with Orange County and Southern CA, to the California State Capitol in Sacramento, and on to our US Capitol in Washington DC. While in DC, Perla Mendoza was invited to meet with the Office of Drug Control Policy at the White House. In 2022 the city of Seal Beach, presented Project Eli, with a city Proclamation.