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GLENDALE -- The war on drugs has a new battleground in North Glendale and La Crescenta.
That's where teens are being targeted by heroin dealers.
"It used to be just marijuana," says Nancy Stone, Vice President of the Crescenta Valley Drug and Alcohol Prevention Coalition. "But we've realized that the drugs are getting more serious, more deadly."
"There are definitely people my age starting to use heroin," says high school senior and student filmmaker Erika Suzuki.
But war has been declared in their community on drug dealers, many of them gang members, reportedly bringing 'free samples' of heroin into the neighborhoods, along with other drugs.
"What's the most common way of the use of heroin up here with the kids that are doing it is off foil," Glendale Police Department officer Matt Zakarian explains to KTLA News. "They're burning it off of foil."
The troops aligning to fight the war against teen drug use include law enforcement, community leaders, educators, and students themselves.
"There's a lot that the adults don't know," Suzuki says.
And Crescenta Valley Town Council member Robbyn Battles agrees. "Honestly? We don't know. We don't understand. And a lot of us are trying to bridge that gap."
Together these community members have formed a powerful coalition to take their neighborhoods back. The Crescenta Valley Drug and Alcohol Prevention Coalition meets regularly to fight the enemy.
Coalition President Howard Hakes has a personal stake in the war. "I have a very close family member that got hooked on drugs," Hakes explains. "Watching that happen, you wouldn't wish on anybody."
Glendale PD officer Zakarian says it starts much too young. "How this all started was a 13 year-old female. That's what really struck me into moving forward with this coalition, a 13 year-old female. She actually was injecting it."
Two student filmmakers are preparing a powerful tool in the war: videos with honest, first-person drug stories from their student peers, whose identities have been protected.
"The drug has just completely taken them over, and destroyed basically any chance that they had," filmmaker Suzuki says.
Her student colleague on the video project Charly Shelton agrees. "Those that continued into it have very little hope for the future."
The student-produced videos played at a recent community drug and alcohol forum. Also on display at the forum were a series of placards with the stories of too many teens who died too young.
"These kids need help," officer Zakarian says. "And that's what I'm hoping this coalition will do -- build a solid community where these kids can grow up and not have to worry about drugs and alcohol."
"The war is being waged by those of us that are not going to allow the drugs," council member Battles says. "And I think the community is absolutely going to win that. Not the drug dealer that's handing out free heroin."
For much more on the Crescenta Valley Drug and Alcohol Prevention Coalition, go to http://www.thecvcouncil.com/cv_drug_and_alcohol_prevention.html.
And for more on the drug issue in the neighborhoods, go to http://police.ci.glendale.ca.us/ and http://www.crescentavalleyweekly.com/.
That's where teens are being targeted by heroin dealers.
"It used to be just marijuana," says Nancy Stone, Vice President of the Crescenta Valley Drug and Alcohol Prevention Coalition. "But we've realized that the drugs are getting more serious, more deadly."
"There are definitely people my age starting to use heroin," says high school senior and student filmmaker Erika Suzuki.
But war has been declared in their community on drug dealers, many of them gang members, reportedly bringing 'free samples' of heroin into the neighborhoods, along with other drugs.
"What's the most common way of the use of heroin up here with the kids that are doing it is off foil," Glendale Police Department officer Matt Zakarian explains to KTLA News. "They're burning it off of foil."
The troops aligning to fight the war against teen drug use include law enforcement, community leaders, educators, and students themselves.
"There's a lot that the adults don't know," Suzuki says.
And Crescenta Valley Town Council member Robbyn Battles agrees. "Honestly? We don't know. We don't understand. And a lot of us are trying to bridge that gap."
Together these community members have formed a powerful coalition to take their neighborhoods back. The Crescenta Valley Drug and Alcohol Prevention Coalition meets regularly to fight the enemy.
Coalition President Howard Hakes has a personal stake in the war. "I have a very close family member that got hooked on drugs," Hakes explains. "Watching that happen, you wouldn't wish on anybody."
Glendale PD officer Zakarian says it starts much too young. "How this all started was a 13 year-old female. That's what really struck me into moving forward with this coalition, a 13 year-old female. She actually was injecting it."
Two student filmmakers are preparing a powerful tool in the war: videos with honest, first-person drug stories from their student peers, whose identities have been protected.
"The drug has just completely taken them over, and destroyed basically any chance that they had," filmmaker Suzuki says.
Her student colleague on the video project Charly Shelton agrees. "Those that continued into it have very little hope for the future."
The student-produced videos played at a recent community drug and alcohol forum. Also on display at the forum were a series of placards with the stories of too many teens who died too young.
"These kids need help," officer Zakarian says. "And that's what I'm hoping this coalition will do -- build a solid community where these kids can grow up and not have to worry about drugs and alcohol."
"The war is being waged by those of us that are not going to allow the drugs," council member Battles says. "And I think the community is absolutely going to win that. Not the drug dealer that's handing out free heroin."
For much more on the Crescenta Valley Drug and Alcohol Prevention Coalition, go to http://www.thecvcouncil.com/cv_drug_and_alcohol_prevention.html.
And for more on the drug issue in the neighborhoods, go to http://police.ci.glendale.ca.us/ and http://www.crescentavalleyweekly.com/.
