ADDICTS NEED TO BELIEVE THEY DESERVE A CHANCE

As a recovering addict who knew Carrie-Ann Hicks, I am deeply
saddened by her death.

The Province reported that Carrie-Ann died outside Abbotsford
Hospital, where she had gone for help, believing herself to have been
poisoned by bad street drugs. She was diagnosed with a bladder
infection and discharged.

To the staff at the MSA hospital she was just another addict. But to
us she was evidence that miracles are possible.

Her path started with people who looked beyond a body ravaged by the
disease of addiction and saw a heart crying out to be given a second
chance.

As time passed, we would watch her become more of who she was born to
be -- a beautiful, loving woman with a renewed passion for life.

I've come to accept that many of us addicts will suffer an inevitable
death if we don't find the strength to recover.

Recovery becomes possible when a person makes the decision to start a
new life while clearing the wreckage of their past with the support
of others.

A community is needed to help an addict have that hope. Hope becomes
tangible in the form of detox and treatment facilities.

What gives us faith in society is the belief that we deserve the
chance to get well and that love will heal us.

I'm grateful that Carrie-Ann experienced these blessings and that,
because of the help I have received in my own recovery, I was able to
share moments with her that I'll always treasure.

Perhaps the next time we see someone hurting, we will understand that
we may be the only chance that person has to survive.

Carrie-Ann's death is a message that we are all responsible for one
another.

Today, I choose to hear what is being said and hope that her story
will cause others to do the same.

Rose Campbell, Abbotsford