. . . scientology . net . au

2007-01-25

Helping the Drug Problem in Sydney

What do you do when you know drugs are a one-way street down, and your friends are taking them? That was the dilemma facing Rama, a teenager from Sydney. “All drugs lead to one place. No where” said Rama, who had already been through it — ecstasy, cocaine, marijuana — all before he was 18 years old.

Rama counts himself as one of the lucky ones. Because he got help when he needed it.

Things were going downhill at breakneck speed when a friend saw Rama was in trouble. His friend told Rama about a program called the Drug Free Ambassadors and handed him a set of booklets about drugs. The Drug Free Ambassadors and their American counterpart, the Drug Free Marshals, created by the Church of Scientology International 13 years ago, have chapters throughout Australia and New Zealand and around the world.

The booklets Rama read were created by the Foundation for a Drug-Free World, and they are written for young people, giving them the truth about the most commonly abused street and prescription drugs. What makes these booklets unique and effective is that they are easy to understand and they are factual. With peer pressure pushing kids to take drugs, these booklets arm kids against the false propaganda, giving them information they need to make educated and responsible choices about drugs.

Once he decided to quit taking drugs, Rama wanted to get through to his friends who were still using them. And he wanted to reach out to other kids throughout Sydney to help them avoid getting into drugs in the first place by really educating them as to what they are about.

Cyrus Brooks, the spokesman for the Drug-Free Ambassadors of Sydney, was full of praise for the teenager. “Rama is very determined to educate other. And he knows what he’s talking about,” said Brooks. “He wants to make sure other kids don't fall into the same trap he was in.”

For more information:

The Drug Free Ambassadors Website
The Drug Salvage Website
Scientology in Australia