Pubdate: Sat, 09 Aug 2014
Source: Southern Illinoisan (Carbondale, IL)
Copyright: 2014 Southern Illinoisan
Contact:  http://www.TheSouthern.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1430
Author: Chris Hottensen

BEREAVED MOTHER SHARES DANGERS OF DRUG USE

MOUNT VERNON -- Chris Marler wasn't prepared for what she found Sept.
5, 2006, in her Marion County home.

She planned to have lunch with her youngest son that day, but when she
came home both her sons were dead.

"My youngest son died at 7:30 in the morning, and he was gone," Marler
said. "I'm on the phone with 911, and I go to the other son's bedroom,
and he was foaming at the mouth. So I perform CPR, and then you go
into shock."

Dustin, 21, and Drew, 23, died of a lethal combination of legal and
illegal drugs -- a mixture of alcohol, marijuana, a non-lethal amount
of heroin and an over-the-counter medication.

Marler was sedated and hospitalized following her sons' deaths, but
after a couple years she said she was able to recover her "frame of
mind."

Since then, she has dedicated her life to educating students, parents
and teachers about the symptoms of drug abuse. She spoke Friday in
Mount Vernon at a Southern Illinois Community Forum on heroin and
prescription drug addiction.

With substance abuse counselors and law enforcement personnel claiming
heroin use is on the rise in the country and warning it could become a
drug of choice in the region, Marler's passion and message remains
urgent.

"I'm scared for these families. I have nothing to lose anymore, I have
nothing to gain. But if I can save a life just by one story, I'm still
going to be out here," Marler said.

She said parents need to know the symptoms of drug abuse, which
include a sudden lack of motivation, lack of involvement with family,
changes in personal hygiene, secretive behavior and new friends.

"If you see signs and something feels funny, check it out. Parents'
jobs are to be parents, not best friends. Their rooms -- you pay the
taxes on that house -- that's your room. Learn what they're doing,"
Marler said.

"Check their cell phones, check out their friends. If they say they're
going to Johnny and Suzie's house, make sure they go to Johnny and
Suzie's house. Be involved in their school, be involved in their life."

Drugs can invade even the most stable and healthy home environments.
Marler said she and her husband have been married for 35 years and her
sons grew up in a healthy family environment, with no substance abuse
in the family.

Dustin was the valedictorian of his high school class and Drew served
three years in the U.S. Air Force.

"I was a mom who believed in 5 o'clock dinners every day," Marler
said. "I was involved in their school. In the inquest, they said it's
not your average family. Well, I am the average family. It's hitting
the average family."

Nothing can bring back Marler's "average family," but with a broken
heart the mother reaches out to other parents, serving as a resource,
and speaks at school functions to help keep families intact and safe
from drugs.

"Everyone in this room doesn't want to walk down the path that my
family has had to walk down and will continue to walk down. It's
tough. Parents aren't supposed to bury their children," Marler said.

"Holidays -- they're horrible. Mother's Day's terrible. I don't want
anyone in this room to ever have to go through what I did, and if
there's anyway I can help, call me and I'm there."

She admits she doesn't have a fail-safe plan to avoid drug abuse, but
that doesn't stop her from sharing what she does know.

"I don't have the answers. I don't have the solutions. I just have a
story."
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MAP posted-by: Matt