The other day, I met an older woman who talked about her son. At age 14, with youthful adventure, he took illegal drugs for the first time which had a profound impact on his developing mind. The mom quickly learned addiction was a mental disease. Like cancer, it can keep coming back again and again.
The mom talked about how strong family support, love and forgiveness is needed to regain control and develop a normal life. On one random day, despite making progress, the drugs overpowered him…bringing him and his family back to square one.
The mom remembers a particular phone call that terrified her. She thought, “would it be a cheerful ‘hi mom’ or a ‘this is the police’ type of call?” She never knew what to expect. Sadly, 20 years later, her son died of a drug overdose. He was 34.
As a result of her son’s death, the mom has become an advocate for getting rid of illegal drugs. Good drugs are properly restored. This includes drugs for pets as well. All unnecessary drugs are a strong temptation to an adventurous young mind.
Sheriff Craddick will be at the Market Street Pharmacy at Food Country on Saturday, April 28, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. to take in all of your unused solid drugs. Not questions will be asked. Just a warm thank you for helping out.
-Paul Paradzinski, Craig County Prevention Team