April 2014/May 2014

www.aadapinc.org
“People Need People”
Thank You To Our Supporters!
Paul Shishima & Company
AADAP Celebrates 36th
Annual Dinner Dance
By Dinora Moran,
Therapeutic Community Caseworker
Photo credit: www.burnonewith.us
O
Production of butane honey oil.
Lethal Butane Hash Mix and
E-Cigarettes Burn Victims and
Explode on the Market
By Rahimah Shah, Development Associate
T
he days of regular cigarettes, pipes and
even hookah have seemingly faded as
being the hottest and most popular
products on the market. E-cigarettes have
undeniably become extremely popular
www.aadapinc.org
and there is an emerging explosion of
experimental cases of using “butane honey
oil” to achieve a high. This common and
growing product of e-cigarettes is changcontinued on page 2
n January 25th, 2014 AADAP celebrated its 36th Annual
Graduates Dinner Dance at the Dream Wedding Banquet Hall
in Korea Town. This was my first and it was a privilege to
be part of such a joyful occasion to recognize the graduates and
their journey towards recovery. Since I started to work at AADAP,
I have embraced the “family concept” and family couldn’t have
been more evident than at this years Dinner Dance. In a room
filled with former graduates, family and friends there was a feel of
harmony and gratitude.
The Dream Wedding Banquet Hall was a very elegant venue and
the food that was served buffet style was delicious. The tone of the
evening was set by MC’s Jennifer P. and Ichizo Y., who did a great
job throughout the event. The event started with an introduction
by Mike Watanabe, President & CEO who recognized the graduates
and their youthfulness. This year’s Dinner Dance was very special
because all three graduates from Olympia Academy (OA) and
Therapeutic Community (TC) were very young.
OA’s graduates Sherley W. and Gabrielle J. could not have been
more thankful for all the support they received while at OA and
the support they continue to
receive from AADAP. It was a
pleasure to hear TC graduate,
Israel F. being so appreciative
of the family he has become
part of and the bright future
he has ahead of him. Each
graduate was presented with
Volume 38, Issue 3, April/May 2014
a certificate from the L.A.
VolumeHoney
38, Issue
1, December/January 2014
Butane
Oil..........................................1
County Board of Supervisors
Dinner
Dance
2014........................................1
Krokodil
............................................1
AMP
FinishGraduates........................1
Line....................................... 3
DrugatCourt
in recognition of his or her
Ronnie’s Welcome Home.............................3
Donor
Thanks..............................2
&3
hard work. To listen to each
Showtime 2014............................................4
Veterans
Day.....................................
55
Earth
Month
at
AADAP.................................
graduate share the struggles
Carson
Social Host
Law.................... 5
OA
Environment
Program............................5
that they have encountered
Lunar
New Year ...........................................6
Toy Drive/Mochi................................5
Black
History Month.....................................6
while in treatment and then
Halloween.........................................
6
1st Marathon..........................................7
Israel’s Graduation............................ 7
hear their plans for the future My
Yanni’s New Beginning.................................7
continued on page 2
Tae
Do.....................................7
StaffKwon
Voices..................................................8
Staff Voices.......................................8
April / May 2014
R i c e Pa p e r
1
Lethal Butane Hash Mix and
E-Cigarettes Burn Victims
Continued from page 1
ing the face of California’s unregulated marijuana
industry. The combination process of heating the
THC marijuana extract and slowly producing “butane
honey oil” or a kind of ‘”wax” results in a pure
amber known as “open blasting.” The butane used
to extract the essential oil frequently blows up in the
faces of those who produce this product and many
times, the repercussions are life-long or deadly.
You may have heard of some of the following
street names used to identify e-cigarettes. According
to the website electroniccigaretteconsumerreviews.
com, examples of various popular brands on the
market are ‘eversmoke,” “blu,” “green smoke,” and
“white cloud.”
In a telephone interview with Dr. Peter Grossman, President of the Los Angeles Society of Plastic
Surgeons and Co-Director of the Grossman Burn
Centers, Dr. Grossman openly shared that he has
Photo credit: Rahimah Shah
AADAP Celebrates 36th
Annual Dinner Dance
treated over 12 butane hash makers for catastrophic
burns since late 2012. The article on Dr. Grossman
was featured in a recent The Los Angeles Times
piece. According to the article and report cases,
dabs of vapors of the hash or “wax” can “bring on a
soaring high even among longtime cannabis smokers who have a strong tolerance for the drug.” The
extreme danger comes in when butane is used to
extract the essential oil of the marijuana plants and,
often times, has the high potential to blow up in the
faces of people. Although the ages of the users can
vary, many times the victims are younger to college
age users who manufacture the wax.
Dr. Grossman shared that he started to see burn
victims one year and a half ago. He mentioned that
the rise in meth labs has almost become an issue of
the past with the increase of these new burn cases.
He explained that he’s seen a generation, which
is teaching the public how to make, manufacture
and use this wax through YouTube videos. During
our phone interview and in the past month, he said
that many of his catastrophic burn victim cases he
treated came from the butane mixtures made in the
garage or at the homes of younger victims. He said,
“The momentary rush is too high of a price to pay
for the injuries that majority of time do not leave
simple scars, but life-altering disfigurement.”
Dr. Grossman emphasized hat the need of public
education is so very important. He stated, “A lot of
people are manufacturing this product and they see
it as an economic resource and is a cheaper way
to achieve a high. However, as a doctor who treats
patients who are scarred for life, which can lead to
death in many cases, he emphasized, “The damage
they inflict on themselves and others has to be
taken seriously.”
The availability and ease at which this butane
hash can be made and used is a very real issue for
our youth. As we continue to become more educated
and informed, it is important that we stay aware
about this by-product used in the e-cigarette craze.
Just as importantly, we as a community must ensure
better education, prevention and treatment before
more individuals cause irreversible harm.
graduates have joined an elite class that they truly deserve.
The evening also recognized keynote speaker, Cory S. and the accomplishments that he has achieved. I have met Cory several times
Continued from page 1
here at the TC, but I have never heard his personal story about what he
had to go through. It was great
to hear the hard work he has
put into the Manzanar experience. TC is grateful for his
dedication to the program. No
matter how busy he is, Cory always seems to find time to give
back to AADAP. The evening
ended with a cha-cha slide that
was performed by OA and TC
staff. This was fun and it was
great to see others joining us on
the floor.
Although the name of the
venue left us somewhat puzzled,
ironically, it couldn’t have fit the
occasion better. Dreams really
do come true at AADAP. This is
one of the reasons why AADAP
staff doesn’t give up on anyone.
With a lot of time and dedication, we can all help each other
reach our goals. As my first
Dinner Dance, I was honored to
be part of such an occasion that
recognizes its graduates in such
an intimate setting. I hope that
the graduates continue to keep
in touch with us, and maybe
even one day be able to share
their experience with the future
Left to right: Israel F, Sherley W. and Gabrielle J. stand strong and proud at their 2014 Dinner Dance graduation ceremony. We wish you and
graduates.
your families our warmest congratulations. Remember where you started and how far you can go.
2
R i c e Pa p e r
was very inspirational. TC Director,
James Stinson could not have said it
better, “welcome to the elite class.”
And yes, at such a young age, all 3
April / May 2014
www.aadapinc.org
Team AMP Triumphs at the Finish Line
By Paulina Hong, Development Director
Photo credit: Rahimah Shah
O
n, Sunday March 9, 2014 Team AMP
(AADAP Marathon Program) successfully
completed the 2014 ASICS LA Marathon, bringing our third season to a close. It’s
hard to believe that AADAP has had a team
of dedicated runners participate in AMP for
three years, and we want to thank all of the
supporters who have made this a successful
program. This year we had a total of 12 Charity Relay and 12 Full Marathon runners finish
the race. Of those, five were clients in our
residential programs, and the entire AADAP
family is very proud of them for having accomplished such a difficult feat in the midst
of working on their own recovery.
This year was probably one of the most
challenging races that we have faced yet. The
morning of the race started extra early as it
was Daylight Saving Time and Spring Forward
began at 2AM, which meant everyone had
one less hour of sleep. A few other hiccups,
including heavy traffic prevented most of the
team from getting to the start line early- we
arrived just as the race was starting. It was also
recorded to be the hottest LA Marathon within
Here’s to our phenomenal 2014 Los Angeles AADAP Half & Full Marathoners! Pictured here are only a third of
our amazing runners. We congratulate and thank all of our internal staff, residents and community runners who
supported AADAP’s mission to prevent & treat substance abuse and addiction!
the last decade with temperatures reaching the
upper 80s, and everyone on the course felt the
heat. In addition, the water stations ran out of
Gatorade, an electrolyte supplement that was
Ronnie’s Welcome Home Party
By James Miyano, Therapeutic Community Counselor
O
Continued on page 4
of the four years of work the committee put in to assist Ronnie get
paroled. Ronnie was nervous, but thanked the committee and others who
helped with the parole process. We enjoyed a delicious buffet that was
provided by Leonard of Cherrystones in Gardena. To close the evening,
Asian Persuasion, who had the crowd singing along with their renditions
of old school R&B songs, entertained the group.
The event brought to an end the hard work and dedication of grass
roots organizing by the local Asian community. We want to thank all those
who have helped and continue to support Ronnie in his newfound productive lease on life.
Photo credit: Nancy Hayata
n Saturday, February 22, 2014, the Ronnie Nakashima Committee and
AADAP sponsored a welcome home party for Ronnie at Centenary Church in
Little Tokyo.
The event was attended by committee members, old friends, family and
AADAP staff. The informal atmosphere was both friendly and comfortable.
Dean Nakanishi of AADAP emceed the party. He gave a brief background
sorely needed on a hot day like this before
even half of the 25,000 runners had passed by.
Despite all of these challenges, we are proud
www.aadapinc.org
April / May 2014
R i c e Pa p e r
3
Team AMP Triumphs
at the Finish Line
Continued from page 3
that all of our team members crossed the finish
line in one piece.
We want to thank all of the supporters
who came out to cheer for our runners. Our
spirits were lifted every time we saw familiar
faces along the course. The families of the
clients who were running were there on the
sidelines, enjoying a brief but elated reunion
with their loved one as they passed by. Daisy
Asis-Nakanishi, Employment Access Director and Eunise Asis-Poblete, Day Treatment
Coordinator brought us individual bags of
fresh-cut oranges. The TC and OA clients
and staff braved the heat and traffic to set
up an official Cheer Station around Mile
20. It was so encouraging to see the bright
yellow shirts that all the supporters wore,
and hear “GO TEAM AMP!” as we trekked
on. At the finish line, the beaming faces of
Rahimah Shah, Development Associate and
volunteers from the TC greeted us as they
hugged every runner and took pictures. After
passing through the secure finish line area,
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R i c e Pa p e r
April / May 2014
we were met at Ocean and Broadway by Mike
Watanabe, President and CEO and his wife
Suzie along with long-time AADAP supporter
Helene Maiden and Frank Nguyen, Fiscal
Director. They coordinated the runner’s rides
and reunion with friends and family. One of
the hardest working volunteers that day was
Marin Yann, IYCC Counselor who dedicated himself to capturing the entire team’s
journey on video. He probably ran just as
much as the marathon runners themselves
as he tirelessly tracked the AMP runners all
along the course, popping up at the most
unexpected places, and was there at the end
documenting our final steps across the finish line. Thank you to Marin for sacrificing
so much to be our documentarian. We are
lucky to have you and we look forward to
the final product!
None of this would be possible without
the generosity of all of our donors and supporters. We want to thank you for helping raise funds for AADAP’s programs and
allowing us to continue providing services to
men, women and children all throughout Los
Angeles county. We are continuing to accept
donations, and if you would like to support,
please visit our page: http://www.firstgiv-
ing.com/teamamp/teamamp. For those who
are interested in joining Team AMP, our next
season will begin in October 2014. Please feel
free to send us an email at [email protected].
People
Need
People
The Rice Paper is a bimonthly publication of the
Asian American Drug Abuse Program, Inc.
Kenneth Kasamatsu, Chairman
Jean Shigematsu, Vice Chairman
Danny Torii, Treasurer
Steven Arellano, Sr., Secretary
Saundra Bryant, Member
Mike Yoshiba, Member
Victor Harewood, Member
Mike Watanabe, MSW President & CEO
Management Team
Daisy Asis-Nakanishi, Employment Access Director
Dean Nakanishi, Administrative Director
Frank Nguyen, Fiscal Director
Glenn Andres, Outpatient Director
Hiroko Makiyama, Preventio Director
James Stinson, Therapeutic Community Director
Jose Esqueda, Youth & Family Program Director
Patty Abrantes, Olympic Academy Director
Paulina Hong, Development Director
ReyAris Tubadeza, Information Technology Director
Rahimah Shah, Editor-In-Chief
Mike Nakayama, Graphic Designer
Adcraft Business Mail, Printer
www.aadapinc.org
AADAP Focuses on Electronic
Waste for Earth Month 2014
By Dean Nakanishi, Administrative Director
A
Photo credit: www.kalev.com
ADAP plans to focus on
electronic waste collection for
Earth Month 2014. To support
Earth Month, AADAP is teaming up
with AK-Recycling for an e-waste
collection fair on Saturday, April
26th, 2014 from 10 AM to 3 PM, at
our Corporate Building on 2900 S.
Crenshaw Boulevard, Los Angeles,
CA 90016.
We will have educational
activities and other informational
programs. Our goal is to collect
over 20,000 lbs. of electronic
waste on that day. We will take
anything that requires a plug or
a battery. If you are dropping
Olympia Academy’s
Environmental
Engagement Program
By Patricia Abrantes, Olympia Academy Director
off any electronic data storage devices AK-Recycling will certify
data will not be recoverable. If you can’t make it on April 26th, we
will begin to accept e-waste materials from April 21st, 2014 at our
Corporate Office. Please call Melissa at (323) 293-6284 to schedule
a drop-off time.
Our goal is to protect our landfills from harmful chemicals
and to reuse as much of the materials as possible. We were first
introduced to AK-Recycling back
in 2012 after a discussion with our
Board Chair Ken Kasamatsu about
our needs for a trustworthy company
that could destroy computer hardware. AK-Recycling has committed
to becoming e-Steward Certified on
e-waste recycling best practices. We
feel so fortunate to have a company
that will come to our door to pick up
our discarded systems. You would be
surprised at how many different items
end up in our waste pile.
With AK-Recycling, we will continue our commitment to recover, reuse and recycle. Please come out and
support Earth Month with AADAP.
daily work of a local urban farm.
Residents were also able to visit locations such as the Hyperion Treatment Center,
Sunshine Canyon Landfill, and Griffith Park
to deepen their understanding of the intricate
interactions between organisms and their
environment.
Our hope is that this program offers the
residents an opportunity to reflect on their
own lives and their choices and decisions in the
context of our natural world. The genuine interest
and respect from the OA residents has made this an
impressive and inspiring collaboration.
We’d like to thank and acknowledge KYCC in
helping make this happen for our residents. Ryan
Allen for managing this collaboration, and Elliott
Khun’s extensive knowledge and experiences shared
with the youth.
www.aadapinc.org
Photo credit: Monica Baek
H
ow do we affect our surroundings? How is food
produced, consumed, and understood? How do
we define and understand our personal, biological, social, and cultural environments?
In the fall of 2013, Olympia Academy (OA) has
integrated an introduction to Ecology course within
our OA youth residential treatment facility, in collaboration with Korean Youth and Community Center
(KYCC). It is a 10-week course that explores the
connection between ourselves and the environment –
using classroom and out-of-classroom experiences.
The KYCC and OA Ecology course has been focused
on the transformative power of our natural world. The
past few months, residents have had the opportunity
to investigate topics around food, trees, water, and
recycling here in Los Angeles.
Residents have been able to not only acquire
knowledge about their local and personal ecologies,
but also have applied this knowledge through various hands on experiences. This year we have built
a raised bed garden for annual vegetables such as
lettuce, strawberry, cilantro and chives. Residents
also built a worm composting bin for kitchen scraps,
planted two fruit trees in front of the OA house,
grown vegetables from seed, and assisted in the
Olympia Academy resident's work together to plant a new tree in time for the upcoming Spring/Summer seasons!
April / May 2014
R i c e Pa p e r
5
FAMILY MATTERS
Family Matters is an open forum for everyone to participate. Because AADAP is committed to the family concept, we invite
all of you to share your ideas and thoughts. You can call or write AADAP c/o of Rahimah Shah at [email protected].
Lunar New Year: Year of the Horse
By Frank Nguyen, Fiscal Director
crowd cheering for both teams.
Thi Mach of IYCC, Stephanie
Nguyen, Kelvin Nguyen, Sandra
Vinh and I performed the song
“Ly ruou mung”. The theme of the
song wished everyone a happy and
prosperous Lunar New Year.
The next acts of the event were
the Lion Dance and the Cultural
Dance from IYCC’s Saturday Tuto-
Thank you to AADAP’s dynamic and hardworking Lunar New Year Committee! AADAP wishes you prosperity and good health in the
coming year!
Photo caption: Paulina Hong
Black History
Month Celebration
6
O
n February 14, 2014 AADAP held it’s annual Black
History Month celebration and the event was
full of knowledge and excitement. The theme
was based on “African American Contributions made
through Music and African American Culture”.
The residents of the Therapeutic Community
By James Stinson,
(TC) teamed up with residents from Olympia
Therapeutic Community Director
Academy (OA),
Satellite House and
friends of AADAP
who all made an
outstanding effort to
bring a different type
of outlook on what
African American
music and cultural
traditions has done
to shape the culture
of the world. The
spotlight was shown
on the contribuAADAP thanks the amazing Black History Month Committee and volunteers! Thank you for
spreading knowledge and furthering cultural awareness.
tions brought forth
R i c e Pa p e r
tional outfit or “ao dai”, hat, “non
la’ and fans. The audience was very
impressed with the synchronizing
of music and dance moves.
I thanked everyone for attending the event. As a member of the
Lunar New Years Committee, I
want to thank AADAP for constantly encouraging its staff, clients,
and community to be exposed
to various cultural celebrations.
As the Vietnamese and Chinese
would say, “chúc mừng nừm mừi” or
“xừnnián kuàilè.”
Photo credit: Rahimah Shah
H
appy Lunar New Year!
January 31, 2014 marked the
beginning of the Lunar New
Year, or the Year of the Horse.
The event began with the
opening remarks from Sandra
Vinh, Admin staff. Maggie Fong
and Tuyet Thach, Therapeutic
Community Counselors introduced their clients to the audience; TC clients shared the history
and described the characteristics
of each of the twelve zodiac animals and their impact on people’s
personalities. They gave a presentation on the cultural Vietnamese
and Chinese art. OA clients gave
a colorful zodiac animal skit that
awed the audience.
To get everyone involved, the
game using chopsticks was introduced. First, two teams of three
each worked together to move
the skittles from one bowl into
another bowl using chopsticks.
This brought the competitive side
out of the participants and got the
rial Program. Saturday Tutorial
Program provides Vietnamese
Tutoring, Culture and Traditional
education on Saturday by volunteer tutors. Lion dancing is very
popular as the lions are said to
frighten away evil spirits and bring
luck in with the new years. The
two colorful IYCC lions moved
throughout the audience and
playfully gave the crowd a chance
to get up close and personal. The
second dance was performed by
the young IYCC ladies in tradi-
April / May 2014
through, Spoken Word, Modern Dance, Motown,
RB, Blues and Rap. The information that was
shared was very enlightening. The program included many forms of creative expression that is
now taken for granted as a form of Afro-American
culture. The presenters provided demonstrations on how Afro-American music was actually
attached to a lot of the difficulties that they faced
during the Civil Rights movement and how the
music was a catalyst for society to identify with
who they were as a people. Many of the songs
they played reminded me of how Afro-American
culture has influenced the laws and helped to
bring freedom and democracy all over the world.
I think the most important thing that I learned
from the program was that African–American
music has been a big influence of change in our
attitude towards one another by helping to bring
us together as a people.
Thank you to our beautiful and diverse AADAP
staff and clients who made this year’s Black History Month an ideal and memorable celebration!
www.aadapinc.org
Residents’ Corner
The residents’ corner is a regular feature in the Rice Paper. It is written to give the reader a
bird’s eye view of recovery and treatment in the T.C. and O.A.
AADAP Marathon
By Vincent I. TC Resident
T
his year’s AADAP’s 2014 LA Marathon will be
on March 9th 2014. My name is Vincent I. and I
am a resident at Therapeutic Community (TC). I
will be one of the runners that will participate in the
marathon.
Never before have I attempted to run a marathon. It
seemed too overwhelming because only professional
athletes could finish such a feat. Not true. Along with
two other members of my TC family, we will complete
our first run successfully.
Now I see one of the reasons to run and that is to
stand for a cause. This marathon represents the fight
to get my life back. I have been in my addiction
for ten years and I finally realize that I need help
to break this destructive cycle because I am tired
of the life that I have been living. It blew my mind
to think of myself as a marathon runner, I did not
consider myself “a runner.” The only thing I ever
ran from was myself. But there I was every Saturday morning with my personal trainer running the
beautiful Marina Del Rey beach.
Before I knew it, fourteen miles didn’t seem that
difficult. I am proud of my teammates, including
Arielle & Eddie and myself. Our hard work will
pay off on marathon day. Thank you, AADAP, for
your continuous support in my journey towards
sobriety. I am beginning to realize my attitude
towards life has changed. I know now that I can do
anything I set my mind to.
Congratulations to Vincent, Arielle, Eddie and Yanni,
AADAP’s residents who completed this years LA Marathon.
Pictured here are TC Clients, Arielle and Vincent right after
completing the LA Marathon and crossing the famous finish
line on Ocean Boulevard in sunny Santa Monica, California
on March 9, 2014!
Yanni’s New Beginning
I
Photo credit: Paulina Hong
improve parent-child communication, how
n 2011, my husband Marcus and I
to establish consistent boundaries while
bought our first house. We believed that
By Cassandra Lane, Yanni R.’s Stepmom
still exhibiting love, how to recognize the
owning property would symbolize investlatest drugs of choice.
liking to him and kept him out of juvenile
ing in a stronger foundation, of hitching
When I presented a writing seminar at OA,
hall. The solution was Olympia Academy— a
ourselves onto the back of an American dream.
I told Yanni and his peers, “Writing can help
well established, affordable youth recovery and
My stepson, Yanni had one more year
you make sense of your life. It can also help
treatment program.
of high school left. I figured he could enjoy
you figure out where you want to go.” I had
As Yanni underwent detox and adjusting
being in a house his father owned, and that
them write six-word memoirs, an excellent way
to the new rules, the ups and downs of getour youngest son, Solomon, could enjoy the
to get students to think about their lives in a
ting used to being sober, following routines,
neighborhood kids and backyard play.
concise, poetic way.
opening up in group sessions and learning
But as we renovated the house, instead of
This emerging, this peeling off of layers is
to respect and work with his peers and staff,
fulfilling our dream, every living thing inside
what his OA counselor, Angelie Montesa, was
Marcus and I attended family support meetour house seemed to break down. Even the
able to help him accomplish.
ings. There, through senior OA counselor,
plants were dying. Yanni’s anger and depresDuring family counseling, Angelie asked
Venora Stapleton’s expert guidance and even
sion imploded and erupted, leaving alcoholMarcus questions about the environment Isurher sense of humor, we learned about ways to
ism, drugs, failing grades, school expulsions,
rounding Yanni when he was still in
altercations with cops, bloody acutero. It reminded me that the past, recidents and uncontrollable outbursts
membered or not, is always with us and
in their wake.
we have to be ready to make connecI told my husband: “Since you work
tions, to do the hard work of healing.
late, and I am not an authority figure
As Yanni prepares to graduate
with Yanni, you’re going to have to find
from the program and high school, he
a way to give him discipline and structalks more, smiles more, and wants
ture. Sometimes kids are crying out for
more out of life. He just ran in the LA
structure.” Marcus didn’t want Yanni to
Marathon. He has received his first colfeel we were sending him away, but I
lege acceptance letter. At 18, he has a
knew that we alone couldn’t save him.
bright life ahead of him. I am proud of
When the court put Yanni on prohim. We are all proud of him. I don’t
bation, his probation officer assigned
know where we would be without OA,
him to a children and family program
without AADAP.
that offers counseling and other serThis—this is a new beginning. We
vices, including mentoring. His main
caseworker, Tanya, visited Yanni while Yanni with his sweet Stepmother, Cassandra and Dad on his accomplished day of thank God, and we thank everyone at
graduation from Olympia Academy.
OA and AADAP.
we were at work. She took a strong
www.aadapinc.org
April / May 2014
R i c e Pa p e r
7
AADAP, Inc.
2900 Crenshaw Blvd.
Los Angeles, Californnia 90016
Telephone: 323-293-6284
ADDRESS SERVICE REQUESTED
AADAP is a substance
abuse rehabilitation center.
If you or anyone you know
is struggling for help,
please contact us at
(323) 293-6284.
NON-PROFIT
ORGANIZATION
U.S POSTAGE
PAID
LOS ANGELES, CA
PERMIT NO. 33789
If you would like to make a
tax-deductible contribution
to AADAP, please send
contributions to the
address above or visit us at
www.aadapinc.org.
Please contact Dean Nakanishi at
the number above if you would
like to donate your vehicle or
make an In-Kind donation.
S TA F F V O I C E S
I
Editor’s note: Staff Voices is a section that sheds light on AADAP’s diverse staff population.
n 2007, while I was an undergrad at CSULB,
When his girlfriend broke up with him,
I began my first involvement with AADAP as
things spiraled for the worst. He decided to
a peer health advocate with Project Choice
check himself into rehab to seek for help, yet
to understand an incident of my past that ineven when he was in rehab, he felt trapped,
volves a significant person: Michael Ferriols.
and wanted a way out. On November 5th,
I grew up in Oxnard, CA. My family was one
2005, Michael hung himself in the institution’s
of the first of our relatives to migrate to the U.S.
bathroom.
We didn’t have much family living near us, so
All of us were devastated. We knew
the friends that my family made became so close
Michael had issues using drugs for sometime,
that we considered ourselves “cousins.” Michael
but no one knew how to approach him and
was one of my cousins. We had a strong friendwe didn’t know how to help. I began blaming
ship and our teenage years were filled with
myself. We were his closest friends, and I felt
many life explorations. Relationships, music,
partly responsible for not stepping with some
Michael and Matt Nailat
college, careers were just some of the things we
kind of support.
were interested in, yet we were also curious about alcohol
Today, I work in a field that assists in wellness and adand drugs.
diction. Michael’s passing encouraged me to learn about substance abuse
Michael was the first of our group to use drugs. Throughout high
and become a support for people who struggle in addiction. I’ve come to
school, he and his girlfriend would always be at parties and I would see
understand that his choices were not my responsibility, yet after acquirMichael at family gatherings under heavy influence. He would always
ing the knowledge and skills through Project Choice and AADAP, I feel
reminisce about our childhood, of how things were better back then. When more comfortable expressing my feelings and advice to those who seek
I left for college I thought things would be all right for Michael, thinking
assistance. In the future, I hope to continue to provide service, education
this was just a phase.
and awareness for the betterment of my community.
8
R i c e Pa p e r
April / May
2014
www.aadapinc.org