Kathy Koenigsdorf of East Islip named Women of Worth honoree by L'Oréal Paris

Kathy Koenigsdorf is an East Islip mother who knows the pain of losing a son to a heroin overdose.

She was one of 10 women honored Monday for tackling pressing community issues, named as Women of Worth honorees by L'Oréal Paris.

In 2013 Koenigsdorf co-founded the East Islip-based Jake Koenigsdorf Foundation, which helps substance abusers ages 18 and older get treatment and also supports family members. Earlier that year, her 21-year-old son, Jake, died of a heroin overdose.

Since then, the foundation has raised $102,000, primarily through small donations, with 98 percent of the money going directly to cover costs of addicts getting treatment, she said. So far 123 addicts have been sent to programs of four months or longer.

The $10,000 that's awarded from L'Oreal Paris, which is part of L'Oréal USA, could cover transportation costs for 10 addicts, as well as their first 30 days of treatment, she said.

An additional $25,000 could come the foundation's way if Koenigsdorf is selected as a national honoree, based on online public voting running from Monday through Nov. 20 on WomenofWorth.com.

Koenigsdorf, 53, said that when she was trying to help her son, an East Islip High School graduate, she was naive and "always behind the eight ball," reaching out primarily to medical people and psychiatrists. She said she has since learned the value of addicts connecting with those who are in recovery and longer-term treatment programs that help participants not just get substance-free but also develop new approaches to dealing with life's ups and downs.

A part-time independent bookkeeper, work she can do remotely, Koenigsdorf devotes much of her time to foundation work. She travels on her own dime to meet with addicts and their families around the country, points them to resources and takes phone calls at all hours of the day and night, sharing her story and what she's learned.

Part of the foundation's approach is asking for help from its growing community on fresh ideas for fundraising and increasing awareness. Such requests through social media have led to a number of opportunities, Koenigsdorf said, including the Women of Worth program, to which she submitted her story.

She sees her foundation endeavor as a new journey she was meant to take.

"Everything comes to you when it should for a reason," she said. Taking no action following her son's death was not an option. "If I don't do something," she said, "I'm as guilty as watching someone being beaten up."