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04-19-2007, 02:09 AM
Print Date: Thursday, April 19, 2007
Last modified: Wednesday, April 18, 2007 5:56 PM PDT
Christy Crandell had the life she always wanted. That included two sons, Ryan and Justin, and an adoring husband, Rick.
Not having to work, she eagerly volunteered at her children's schools and the family's church in an upper-class neighborhood in Rocklin.
Life was great.
Until a then 17-year-old Ryan, five years ago, unexpectedly confessed to his parents that he had a problem with drugs.
"He was scared. He didn't know how to stop using. He was doing anything he could get his hands on. Unbeknownst to us, he started on his addiction path at age 13 in our liquor cabinet," Crandell said this week.
Until then, her son received mostly A's in elementary school, was a "normal" kid and played basketball and football on the school teams.
When Ryan was almost 14, in the eighth grade, however, his moods and grades slowly began to change.
Crandell blamed her son's moodiness and his slip in grades to adolescent angst, to harder schoolwork, to just being a teen, to anything but substance abuse.
"I naively thought the life my husband and I provided these boys - a stay at home mom, two involved parents - would isolate my kids from experiencing these things," Crandell said.
That wasn't the case, though.
By ninth grade, Crandell said, Ryan "had progressed to marijuana and then to whatever he could get his hands on."
Until his surprise confession at age 17, she didn't know her son was regularly using drugs.
A year later, and after being in treatment, Ryan was arrested for five armed robberies in a two-day period. He was under the influence of Coricidin cold tablets and marijuana at the time.
His sentence?
Thirteen years in the Folsom State Prison.
"He was 3 weeks past his 18th birthday when he was arrested in Truckee. This is a testament of how far someone will go to get more money for drugs, even for boys raised good. It's still hard to believe about a boy I raised," said Crandell, who created the Web site, www.stopteendrugaddiction.com, and wrote the book, "Lost and Found: A Mother and Son find Victory over Teen Drug Addiction," to warn parents about the dangers of drugs.
In the book's forward, Ryan Crandell writes, "I had a great childhood. My father coached my sports teams and my mother was always up to cook breakfast, take me to school and take care of me. There was no dysfunctional family to blame my problems on. I had loving parents, a great little brother, a nice home, a cool car and plenty of advantages ... I hid my drug habits well and became a proficient liar ... I take full responsibility for my crimes and I deserve to be behind bars. No one is to blame for my situation except me. If I hadn't been arrested, I'd be dead. I've put my family through hell."
Education is needed
To help community members avoid what her family went through, Crandell speaks at community events such as Monday's Meadow Vista-Weimar-Colfax-Alta Community Drug Awareness Forum at Weimar Hills School. Since January, she is also the Rocklin Unified School District's first parent outreach coordinator.
"The ripple effect is huge. When our son was arrested, it woke up our community that this could happen to anyone," Crandell said. "But I think we have a long way to go. Too many kids are going down this road."
Placer County Deputy Sheriff Dan Blair, who is Chana High's school resource officer, said every child will have to make a decision about whether to try drugs, "regardless of one's station in life."
Why do youth start using drugs when they're at school during the day and then, after school, under their parents' supervision?
"That's the million-dollar question. They do it because their friends tell them to, because their parents never told them not to, because their friends say it's cool," said Blair, who also spoke at Monday's forum. "Kids today are into all drugs. There's some newer things along with the old standbys like heroin, methamphetamine, cocaine, marijuana and alcohol."
Today, drugs are more acceptable, according to Blair.
"Illegal and controlled substances are available anywhere. Students can get drugs from everyone. It doesn't matter where you go or where you are. A lot of people think we live in a safe area up in Weimar. But the drug culture is seeking your kids out," Blair said. "Unless a parent actively involves themselves and talks to their kid, knows what their kid is doing and who they're doing it with, their child is susceptible."
Blair doesn't like to hear parents say, "never my child."
"When parents say that, they're inviting disaster. A much safer approach is to say, 'my son might do drugs unless I do something to intervene," Blair said. "Forums provide parents with education. A certain group of parents are going to be interested and seek out more information, another group of parents will put their heads in the sand and say 'my kids won't do it' and some parents just don't care."
Blair has seen students as young as kindergartners imitating older siblings by getting high off of inhalants.
"Marijuana's not taboo anymore. There are a lot of obvious signs for parents to see. For instance, 4:20 is underground and now a recognized symbol of marijuana usage. If you see handwritten 4:20 multiple places on your kid's binder, that's evidence your child is being influenced," Blair said. "Since these signs vary region for region, it's far more important to know your child and if behavior patterns are changing, if friends are changing. Are the hanging out places different?"
In a Record article about teen drug use last October, Colfax High School Resource Officer Mark Weisman said 20 or less Colfax High students are found with drugs and alcohol each school year.
"If I had to guess, I'd say the numbers are the same this year. Kids are talking about more methamphetamine on campus but I haven't seen it yet," said Weisman, who is also a Placer County deputy sheriff.
His advice to parents is similar to what Monday's speakers said: "keep an eye on who your child is hanging out with. If you notice a change of behavior, change of friends, change of dress, grades going down, then start being suspicious. Be involved with your kids, start asking questions."
And, if a parent's suspicion is true, Weisman added, there's always counseling available or the Parent Project.
The next Parent Project, a 10- to 12-week program for parents of strong willed or out-of-control adolescents, begins Monday night at Auburn Grace Community Church.
"Parent Project is for all parents who struggle to hold the line with their teenagers. Its main focus is changing destructive adolescent behavior and keeping our kids safe. Nationally, 100,000 parents have gone through this program. If parents work this program, it is guaranteed to change their lives," said Bobbi Jo Forsyth, one of the project's facilitators and also the Colfax High School's college and career center advisor
"It is difficult to supervise our children when our community and our society takes teenage drinking and drug use lightly. Drugs and alcohol and all the risky behaviors that go with it kill teenagers," Forsyth said. "Parent Project gives parents practical training on how to influence their children's behavior. We do not control our kids, that is for sure, but we can truly learn to influence their behavior."
Call 268-1355, extension 2, for more information about Parent Project.
During a community drug awareness forum Monday night at Weimar Hills School, Deputy Sheriff Dan Blair gave the crowd of 100 parents and their children some stern warnings about the availability of drugs in the area. He said parents need to be aware of changes to their children and to ask questions. Susie Iventosch/Colfax Record
Signs and symptoms of narcotic use: changes in behavior, friends and grades; being awake at odd hours; sudden and unplanned weight loss.
4:20, an underground symbol for marijuana, is also celebrated by many marijuana supporters this Friday.
Conduct drug tests randomly on your child. It will provide your child with an acceptable excuse to turn down drugs from their friends.
http://www.colfaxrecord.com/articles/2007/...ies/02drugs.txt (http://www.colfaxrecord.com/articles/2007/04/19/news/top_stories/02drugs.txt)
Last modified: Wednesday, April 18, 2007 5:56 PM PDT
Christy Crandell had the life she always wanted. That included two sons, Ryan and Justin, and an adoring husband, Rick.
Not having to work, she eagerly volunteered at her children's schools and the family's church in an upper-class neighborhood in Rocklin.
Life was great.
Until a then 17-year-old Ryan, five years ago, unexpectedly confessed to his parents that he had a problem with drugs.
"He was scared. He didn't know how to stop using. He was doing anything he could get his hands on. Unbeknownst to us, he started on his addiction path at age 13 in our liquor cabinet," Crandell said this week.
Until then, her son received mostly A's in elementary school, was a "normal" kid and played basketball and football on the school teams.
When Ryan was almost 14, in the eighth grade, however, his moods and grades slowly began to change.
Crandell blamed her son's moodiness and his slip in grades to adolescent angst, to harder schoolwork, to just being a teen, to anything but substance abuse.
"I naively thought the life my husband and I provided these boys - a stay at home mom, two involved parents - would isolate my kids from experiencing these things," Crandell said.
That wasn't the case, though.
By ninth grade, Crandell said, Ryan "had progressed to marijuana and then to whatever he could get his hands on."
Until his surprise confession at age 17, she didn't know her son was regularly using drugs.
A year later, and after being in treatment, Ryan was arrested for five armed robberies in a two-day period. He was under the influence of Coricidin cold tablets and marijuana at the time.
His sentence?
Thirteen years in the Folsom State Prison.
"He was 3 weeks past his 18th birthday when he was arrested in Truckee. This is a testament of how far someone will go to get more money for drugs, even for boys raised good. It's still hard to believe about a boy I raised," said Crandell, who created the Web site, www.stopteendrugaddiction.com, and wrote the book, "Lost and Found: A Mother and Son find Victory over Teen Drug Addiction," to warn parents about the dangers of drugs.
In the book's forward, Ryan Crandell writes, "I had a great childhood. My father coached my sports teams and my mother was always up to cook breakfast, take me to school and take care of me. There was no dysfunctional family to blame my problems on. I had loving parents, a great little brother, a nice home, a cool car and plenty of advantages ... I hid my drug habits well and became a proficient liar ... I take full responsibility for my crimes and I deserve to be behind bars. No one is to blame for my situation except me. If I hadn't been arrested, I'd be dead. I've put my family through hell."
Education is needed
To help community members avoid what her family went through, Crandell speaks at community events such as Monday's Meadow Vista-Weimar-Colfax-Alta Community Drug Awareness Forum at Weimar Hills School. Since January, she is also the Rocklin Unified School District's first parent outreach coordinator.
"The ripple effect is huge. When our son was arrested, it woke up our community that this could happen to anyone," Crandell said. "But I think we have a long way to go. Too many kids are going down this road."
Placer County Deputy Sheriff Dan Blair, who is Chana High's school resource officer, said every child will have to make a decision about whether to try drugs, "regardless of one's station in life."
Why do youth start using drugs when they're at school during the day and then, after school, under their parents' supervision?
"That's the million-dollar question. They do it because their friends tell them to, because their parents never told them not to, because their friends say it's cool," said Blair, who also spoke at Monday's forum. "Kids today are into all drugs. There's some newer things along with the old standbys like heroin, methamphetamine, cocaine, marijuana and alcohol."
Today, drugs are more acceptable, according to Blair.
"Illegal and controlled substances are available anywhere. Students can get drugs from everyone. It doesn't matter where you go or where you are. A lot of people think we live in a safe area up in Weimar. But the drug culture is seeking your kids out," Blair said. "Unless a parent actively involves themselves and talks to their kid, knows what their kid is doing and who they're doing it with, their child is susceptible."
Blair doesn't like to hear parents say, "never my child."
"When parents say that, they're inviting disaster. A much safer approach is to say, 'my son might do drugs unless I do something to intervene," Blair said. "Forums provide parents with education. A certain group of parents are going to be interested and seek out more information, another group of parents will put their heads in the sand and say 'my kids won't do it' and some parents just don't care."
Blair has seen students as young as kindergartners imitating older siblings by getting high off of inhalants.
"Marijuana's not taboo anymore. There are a lot of obvious signs for parents to see. For instance, 4:20 is underground and now a recognized symbol of marijuana usage. If you see handwritten 4:20 multiple places on your kid's binder, that's evidence your child is being influenced," Blair said. "Since these signs vary region for region, it's far more important to know your child and if behavior patterns are changing, if friends are changing. Are the hanging out places different?"
In a Record article about teen drug use last October, Colfax High School Resource Officer Mark Weisman said 20 or less Colfax High students are found with drugs and alcohol each school year.
"If I had to guess, I'd say the numbers are the same this year. Kids are talking about more methamphetamine on campus but I haven't seen it yet," said Weisman, who is also a Placer County deputy sheriff.
His advice to parents is similar to what Monday's speakers said: "keep an eye on who your child is hanging out with. If you notice a change of behavior, change of friends, change of dress, grades going down, then start being suspicious. Be involved with your kids, start asking questions."
And, if a parent's suspicion is true, Weisman added, there's always counseling available or the Parent Project.
The next Parent Project, a 10- to 12-week program for parents of strong willed or out-of-control adolescents, begins Monday night at Auburn Grace Community Church.
"Parent Project is for all parents who struggle to hold the line with their teenagers. Its main focus is changing destructive adolescent behavior and keeping our kids safe. Nationally, 100,000 parents have gone through this program. If parents work this program, it is guaranteed to change their lives," said Bobbi Jo Forsyth, one of the project's facilitators and also the Colfax High School's college and career center advisor
"It is difficult to supervise our children when our community and our society takes teenage drinking and drug use lightly. Drugs and alcohol and all the risky behaviors that go with it kill teenagers," Forsyth said. "Parent Project gives parents practical training on how to influence their children's behavior. We do not control our kids, that is for sure, but we can truly learn to influence their behavior."
Call 268-1355, extension 2, for more information about Parent Project.
During a community drug awareness forum Monday night at Weimar Hills School, Deputy Sheriff Dan Blair gave the crowd of 100 parents and their children some stern warnings about the availability of drugs in the area. He said parents need to be aware of changes to their children and to ask questions. Susie Iventosch/Colfax Record
Signs and symptoms of narcotic use: changes in behavior, friends and grades; being awake at odd hours; sudden and unplanned weight loss.
4:20, an underground symbol for marijuana, is also celebrated by many marijuana supporters this Friday.
Conduct drug tests randomly on your child. It will provide your child with an acceptable excuse to turn down drugs from their friends.
http://www.colfaxrecord.com/articles/2007/...ies/02drugs.txt (http://www.colfaxrecord.com/articles/2007/04/19/news/top_stories/02drugs.txt)