A program
that promised to help teens kick their drug habits turned into a
nightmare for students. Their families sent them there hoping they
would come home clean but many of them almost didn't come home
alive.
Pamela
Elliott still shakes her head in disbelief when she watches a video
tape of the Montel show showing the drug rehab program her son was
in for 2 months. At 15 years old he started experimenting with drugs
and got hooked.
“You can't
follow kids around all the time,” says Pam. “I thought for sure I
would get a phone call one day telling me he was dead.”
That's when Pamela started researching
rehab programs and got this brochure for a place called
Pacific
Coast
Academy,
a center in Samoa
that promised drug rehab, round the clock counselors and education
and she sent her son.
But instead
of her Chase getting better he got worse. The children were beaten,
isolated. There were no counselors, and no education.
Chase is
home now, and there's a civil and criminal lawsuit pending against
the people who ran what Pamela calls the rehab scheme.
And now
Pamela along with this woman, Crystal Elliott, is dedicated to
educating families about the warning signs. Signs their children
might be on drugs.
Crystal
even wrote a book for parents, called “Ever Wondered if Your Child
Will Use Drugs?”
“I have a
mission,” says Elliot, “because my own experience 14 years of drug
addiction.”
Together
they promote Teen Action Program, a non-profit group aimed at
helping families stop a child's drug problem before it starts.
There are
many reasons these women dedicate their time to helping other
families look for the warning signs the biggest reason for Pamela is
her son Chase.
The 2 women
are working towards opening a residential treatment center for teens
in the valley. They also provide their education and outreach
program free of charge to any school or group that is interested.
For more
information on Teen Action Program, call (760) 340-5265.
For more
information on “Ever Wondered if Your Child Will Use Drugs?” log
onto
www.ever-wondered.com,
Amazon.com, or call toll free 1-866-205-1479.
