Washington mother: 'Please stop giving my kids money for heroin!'

Mother takes her anti-drug message to the streets

VANCOUVER, Wash. – When Teri Joy saw one her child's friends begging for money to buy drugs on a street corner, she knew she had to do something about it.

The Vancouver, Washington mother took to the streets, returning to the corner where she saw her child's friend. She went armed with her own sign: "Please STOP giving my kids money for heroin!!!!"

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Heroin had taken over two of her children's lives - a daughter, who is clean now, but also a son, whom she hasn't heard from for a while. Joy says kids on the street holding signs that ask for money don't need it for meals; instead, they're in desperate need for their next fix.

Joy says she has gotten some push-back from the community, but she isn't budging.

"These are my kids – they're all my kids, even the ones I don't know," she says. "They're still somebody's kids. There's a mom some place."


About the Author:

Ken Haddad has proudly been with WDIV/ClickOnDetroit since 2013. He also authors the Morning Report Newsletter and various other newsletters, and helps lead the WDIV Insider team. He's a big sports fan and is constantly sipping Lions Kool-Aid.