Pubdate: Mon, 12 Jun 2006
Source: Lompoc Record (CA)
Copyright: 2006 Lee Central Coast Newspapers
Contact: http://www.lompocrecord.com/contact/lettertoeditor.html
Website: http://www.lompocrecord.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/242
Author: Neil Nisperos, Staff Writer
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/meth.htm (Methamphetamine)

RECOVERING METHAMPHETAMINE ADDICT TURNS ANTI-DRUG ACTIVIST

His eyes were sunken into his face. Even with his dramatic weight 
loss, Benjamin Angel Quinata said matter-of-factly, he looked like a 
skeleton, or a demon.

Methamphetamine had taken its toll. The drug was Quinata's master. He 
would do anything for it.

That was a year ago. He is much healthier now, heavier.

"I looked like somebody who rose from the dead," said the 26-year-old 
Lompoc resident. "I stole from people just to pay for a fix or just 
to have items. I used people. I lied. My hygiene was very bad. I 
rarely took showers."

Even as his grandfather lay dying, Quinata said, he continued to use 
meth and sell the drug out of his house.

"Meth can make the nicest person in the world do things they would 
never think of doing," said Quinata. "My grandfather was dying in the 
hospital and I was watching his house and I sold and used drugs in 
and out of his house. While he was in the hospital in critical 
condition, the night he died, I went out and got more drugs."

Quinata said he was hooked on meth for about five years. He was 
arrested last year for possession but continued to use and sell.

It wasn't until the birth of his second son, Xavier Vincente 
Moncada-Quinata, nine months ago, that he quit the drug for good.

He said he missed the first year of the life of his first son, a 
2-year-old, because he was too busy getting high and was too focused 
on getting the next fix.

"My second child was about to be born," Quinata said. "I had already 
missed his first year of growing and looked at my second child as my 
first chance to do the right thing."

His girlfriend, Victoria Moncada, said she gave Quinata an ultimatum 
to make him quit drugs. "I told him to choose drugs, or me and your 
son," she said.

Quinata called his probation officer and checked into the Good 
Samaritan Recovery Point detox center in Santa Maria for 21 days.

"I've been meth-free for a year and 19 days," Quinata said. "I'm 
basically taking it one day at a time. But it feels good when you're 
one more day cleaner."

His girlfriend is proud of his effort to be a real father to his 
children. "I support him 100 percent in his recovery," she said.

Last November, Quinata attended a meth forum at Lompoc City Hall 
organized by Lompoc resident Cindy Strange, the mother of a 
recovering addict. At the forum, Quinata spoke about his experiences 
as a way to spread awareness of the dangers of meth use.

"He wants to reach out and help other people. That's his big thing," 
Strange said.

Despite the euphoria, being able to stay up all night, and making one 
"feel invincible," the consequences of meth use, Quinata said, 
include bad hygiene, the loss of teeth, facial sores, an older 
appearance, and death.

"It's extremely bad," he said. "Words can't say how bad it is. It's 
now more popular than other drugs. It's taken over as the most 
popular drug on the street. It's cheaper and you get more bang for your buck."

"It's a huge issue in North County," Strange added. "It's one of the 
biggest problems in Lompoc and we don't have a lot of resources (to 
fight addiction) here. That's what we're trying to work to get here - 
is more resources."

In December, Quinata joined Strange and a support group for 
recovering meth addicts, which formed after the forum. The group 
meets at 6 p.m. the first and third Monday of each month at 137 North 
C St. Since joining Strange and her movement against methamphetamine 
use in Lompoc, he has spoken out in public against the drug and 
educated people about its effects.

For more information about joining the meth forum, or helping Strange 
and Quinata raise awareness about the dangers of meth use in Lompoc, 
call Cindy at 736 9662. 
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MAP posted-by: Beth Wehrman