Stray Love Brings Real Talk to Rhode Island Teens

When an author stands in front of a room full of high school students, keeping their attention can be a challenge. But when Stacey Caputi Liakos began to tell her story, the room went still. Visiting Mount Hope High School and Hope High School during Red Ribbon Week, the author of Stray Love: My Story of Love, Life, and Loss opened up about her journey through addiction, domestic violence, and the long path back to self-discovery.

Her goal was not to lecture. It was to connect. “You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with,” Stacey told students, encouraging them to take a closer look at the company they keep. Through excerpts from her memoir, she guided the discussion toward choices, relationships, and resilience, helping students understand that the message of Red Ribbon Week about drug prevention and healthy decision-making is more than a campaign. It is something that plays out in everyday life.

Stacey’s story reveals how love, when misplaced, can lead to pain, and how forgiveness, especially self-forgiveness, is the first step toward healing. “Love should never hurt,” she said, her voice steady and sincere. She reminded students that it is never too late to change direction, no matter what mistakes or hardships they have faced.

The response was immediate. Teachers and students described the talks as emotional, grounding, and eye-opening. Stacey’s honesty, paired with her gentle and unguarded delivery, created a space where students could reflect on their own lives. Her ability to speak openly about difficult topics like addiction and domestic violence made those subjects feel human, not distant.

After each visit, Stacey donated copies of Stray Love to the schools’ libraries so students could continue exploring its themes of love, loss, and redemption. She hopes to bring the Stray Love Speaker Series to more schools across Rhode Island, encouraging young people to talk honestly about what they are going through and to remember that strength often begins with vulnerability. To learn more about the book and Stacey’s ongoing speaker series, visit mystraylove.com.