Recovering addict Craig Farris, an award-winning public
speaker who wrote his first book while serving an
eight-year sentence in a California prison, will present
insights into youth drug abuse prevention for teens and
parents as part of his program endorsed by the Los
Angeles County Department of Education.
While teen
abuse of illegal substances is on the decline, their use
of prescription drugs is skyrocketing, so drug abuse
overall is still on the rise, Farris said.
"There are 14-year-old kids addicted to injecting
heroine and crystal meth up their arms right here in
good old, bucolic Thousand Oaks — believe it," said
Farris, who ran a general construction corporation in
Ventura County called Southern California Systems Inc.
in the early 1980s when his cocaine addition kicked into
high gear. "Today's teenage drug addict is tomorrow's
armed bank robber. I was. Armed bank robbers kill
innocents. I didn't, but could have."
His talk, from his book "Drugs, Kids and Crime:
Surviving Our Drug Obsessed Culture," is a chance for
families to talk about drugs in our society and ask
questions of someone who's been there, said event
coordinator Jana Covell of Thousand Oaks.
"Drug abuse is still a subject that no one likes to
talk about. It hits all types of families in all
socio-economic brackets, all over the world," said
Covell, program coordinator for the Thousand Oaks
Library. She also plans events at the Grant R. Brimhall
branch, where Farris will speak on Monday.
Farris, whose program is also endorsed by the Los
Angeles Unified School District's Board of Advisors, is
now shooting and directing a documentary on addiction
and has recently launched a new nonprofit organization,
Over the Wall Foundation, which brings youth drug and
alcohol prevention to schools and youth groups. Farris'
talk on Monday will be filmed for inclusion in a
documentary by a CBS News affiliate, and audience
members will be asked to sign a waiver.
"Craig Farris is a person who has been there, served
time for drug use and is now trying to help young people
today get off drugs or keep them from starting in the
first place," Covell said. "Drug abuse is not something
you can quit alone. Addicts need someone who has been
there to understand what they are going through, and
families dealing with an addict need to connect with
other people who have been there, people who know what
they are going through, because unless you've been
there, you don't know the nightmare that it creates."
Farris, a Thousand Oaks resident, has written two
books on the topic.
"But more importantly, I've actually lived it, day in
and day out for 20 years," said Farris. "Anyone can
recite the scientific evidence, but what I'm able to do
is illustrate through my own experience how it plays out
in real life."
The event was made possible by sponsors, including
Fey Chiropractic with Dr. Pierre Fey, Tango and Tango
Salon and Spa in Thousand Oaks, Maui and Sons,
Boccaccio's, Molly's Beauty Supply and Friends of the
Thousand Oaks Library.
As the author of "Drugs, Kids and Crime," he will
talk about his progressive addition to drugs that began
in his early teenage years, his introduction to criminal
behavior "which is almost always part of drug
addiction," the years of imprisonment that followed and
his road to recovery. Farris also will discuss the most
up-to-date science on alcoholism and addiction, and how
parents can help keep their kids drug-free or guide them
into successful recovery.
"I know that kids listen to and really hear me,"
Farris said. "I'm not an authority figure who's telling
them what to do. I tell them the truth and expose my
innermost self to them and for these reasons, they
listen to me and talk with me and that's where we really
start to solve the problem."
Farris believes parents also relate to him because
they're his age, "and probably did some of the things I
did, or at least experimented with them," said Farris,
who emphasized the talk will be presented in a "nonpunitive,
nonjudgmental atmosphere."
"Craig Farris can offer insight, tips and, hope, to
families struggling with this issue," Covell said. "I
encourage every teenager and every parent of a teenager
to be here on Aug. 11. I think teens need to hear
Craig's story and their parents need to know what their
kids are facing at schools here in the Conejo Valley."
God created us all for something, sometimes even in
the most painful ways, to fulfill a specific purpose,
Farris said.
"I believe this is mine. I have a purpose in my life
now which is something I never had before all those
years when I was abusing myself and all other life with
the use of drugs. I have to do what I do."
The Over the Wall Foundation is currently in need of
cash funding, computers, office supplies, video
equipment, transportation services and more. For more
information visit
http://www.otwf.org, e-mail Craig Farris at
craig@otwf.org, or
call him at 323-710-1685.
Recovering addict and author Craig Farris will
read from his book, Drugs Kids and Crime:
Surviving our Drug Obsessed Culture, and present
valuable insights into youth drug abuse
prevention for parents, teachers and kids on
Tuesday, May 6, 2008, 7 p.m., at the Newbury
Park Branch Library, 2331 Borchard Road, Newbury
Park.
"Donnamarie
Recco, Actress, (Analyze This, Law and Order)
and radio talk show host