Pubdate: Wed, 30 May 2007
Source: 100 Mile House Free Press (CN BC)
Copyright: 2007 100 Mile House Free Press
Contact:  http://www.100milefreepress.net/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/2143
Author: Al Paterson
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/coke.htm (Cocaine)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/heroin.htm (Heroin)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/youth.htm (Youth)

PROFILE OF COURAGE: HOW ONE MAN CAME BACK

Randy Miller is, and has been, a lot of things in his  life but above
all he's a survivor and even that took a  lot of luck.

"I have no idea why I survived," said the affable  former drug addict
who was in town last week to  describe for local students his 14 years
living in  Vancouver's downtown eastside, widely known as Canada's
roughest slum. "I did speedballs (a mixture of heroin  and cocaine)
many, many times a day, and we used to  just take a needle off the
wall, sharpen it as best we  could, then use it and put it back in the
wall for the  next guy. I have no idea why I didn't get AIDS."

Miller spoke to a large gathering of local Grade 10  through 12 high
school students at Peter Skene Ogden  Secondary School and held back
nothing.

"I'm not here to preach to you," Miller said. "You make  your own
choices in life. I just want you to have the  facts. After that,
whatever you do is up to you. But if  you do make the decision to take
drugs, know the  possible consequences in advance. That's all I'm
saying."

His presentation was enhanced by viewing the  documentary entitled
Through A Blue Lens. The film was  shot by East Vancouver police
Const. Mark Steinkampf  and Sgt. Toby Hinton who were part of a
five-man drug  unit dubbed the Odd Squad. They were also at PSO trying
  to explain why people do drugs, the possible effects  and how to
avoid the pitfalls associated with drugs.

Hinton got to know Miller quite well when filming him  at his worst.
That graphic footage touched many in the  audience, and it was even
more moving when the film ended and Miller got up to address the
students in person.

Many of those in the film are dead now. Miller is the  lone real
success story, being in recovery for the past  seven years.

"For about a year and a half I couldn't even watch the film," he
admitted. "I had to go into the hallway and come back when it was
over. It made me sick to my stomach to see myself like that."

Miller has given many talks to young people about his  experiences,
travelling all across Canada and even the  far north. Last year he was
the recipient of the  prestigious Courage To Come Back Award. He
explained  how drug addiction begins.

"If I give a kid a bag of candy, I don't get that bag of candy back
until he eats 'em all," said Miller. "That's because he likes 'em.
There are people--and I'm one of them I guess--who have an addictive
personality. But I didn't know that. What I know is that the first hit
is always free. They keep giving stuff to you. In my case it was nine
days. Then you're hooked. You want another hit."

Miller was a talented hockey player, good enough to dream of one day
making it to the National Hockey League. He was good enough to play
junior in New Westminster when he was only 15 years old.

"I was pretty good at everything in sports," he says. "I was a good
lacrosse player, I could play baseball and I was a track star. I got
hooked up with a girl, she was Miss New Westminster, and she was a
knockout. Hey, I was 15, you know what I'm saying? What I didn't know
was she was a drug addict. She came over to my house every day for a
month one summer. Then one day she came over and said she couldn't
score enough dope for both of us, just for herself. I thought, no
problem. But after a few hours I started to shake, I got diarrhea,
stuff was coming out of every orifice in my body. I thought I was
coming down with the flu. That's when I found out I was hooked. I
didn't know, I was uneducated. So I'm here today to educate you, give
you the facts."
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MAP posted-by: Steve Heath