JOIN IN HOPE FOR DRUG-FREE FUTURE

Returning from a few days out of town, I was disappointed to read
about the outcome of the Daybreak Youth Services mural discussion. (An
Aug. 17 story reported, "Mural's anti-drug message is silenced.")
Apparently, this valuable message was not appropriate for our new
downtown image, which is terribly short-sighted. The cost to society
through crime to support addiction and the loss to society of youthful
human talent is legion. Sadly, nearly any family, at some point, finds
the despair of an addiction.

My sincere hope, as a former Daybreak Youth Services board member and
regular contributor, is that all of this discussion will shine some
light on Daybreak Youth Services and the wonderful work they do with
addicted teens. We may not be as glamorous as some community nonprofit
organizations, but the need is profound and it takes money to fulfill.
I invite you to join me in supporting Daybreak if this entire incident
has touched your sensibility in some way. Our young people need help.

Jack McFarland

Vancouver