DRUG ABUSE CAN RUIN HUMAN LIVES--IN ANY NEIGHBORHOOD

I am writing to express my heartfelt appreciation for the letter from
Bonnie Atkinson ["Crack cocaine sentences must continue to be harsh,"
April 21], and for her candor in sharing the devastation that can
result from drug addiction.

I also have buried my son. He was 19 years old. Although my child did
not die of a drug overdose, and had successfully fought the battle to
overcome addiction, I, too, have experienced the heartbreak of seeing
what drugs can do to a life.

Ms. Atkinson so rightly urges parents to understand that this scourge
is a tragedy that can happen to anyone. It is not something that
happens only to "bad" kids from less-than-desirable families.

It happens to bright, promising kids with responsible parents. It
happens in the suburbs, the city and the country. And those who
peddle this misery also come from all backgrounds and all types of
families.

Everything possible should be done to maintain strong sentencing
guidelines for these merchants of death and destruction who walk our
streets.

Ms. Atkinson states that she can no longer do anything for her son
but put flowers on his grave, a thought that I have often had myself
during lonely visits to the cemetery. I would venture to say,
however, that, in her willingness to share such personal heartbreak
with the public in an effort to increase awareness, she honors her
son's memory in a very special way.

Those of us who have suffered the unspeakable tragedy of losing
children can do no more than to try to reach out through our own
grief to find ways to make the world a little better however we are
able. In so doing, we can hope to keep a little part of our children
alive by spreading the love we feel for them to others.

Carolyn Pankratz

Spotsylvania