Today would have been Kyle Nolan’s 19th birthday, a day he shared with his brother Kevin and sister Marion.
Instead, the Sebastopol teen’s family is in mourning after his untimely death last month at a spiritual retreat center in Peru, where he ingested a hallucinogenic brew during a ceremony.
Now Kyle’s family is urgently trying to raise $8,000 to bring him home.
“We want our son returned home and a full autopsy done, and to see whether there is evidence of a homicide,” said Kyle’s father, Sean Nolan, who lives in Petaluma.
In August, Kyle Nolan, a graduate of Analy High School, traveled to the Shimbre Center near Puerto Maldonado, Peru to participate in a 10-day spiritual retreat that culminated in a traditional ayahuasca ceremony.
Ayahuasca is often used by indigenous Amazon tribes and contains dimethyltryptamine, a psychedelic substance illegal in the United States. It also has cardiovascular effects and can increase the heart rate and diastolic blood pressure and in some cases cause significant psychological stress.
The family is racing the clock to raise enough money because Kyle’s body could soon be cremated by the Peruvian authorities unless the Nolans come up with enough cash to have it returned to the United States. A donation collection started by friends, and with $2,000 inside, was stolen this Thursday from the Rohnert Park veterinary office owned by Kyle’s mother.
“We will be without closure for our grief if we don't find out as best we can how our beautiful son died,” said Sean Nolan, who has created an online fundraising campaign through Fundly in an attempt to raise the funds.
