Susan York knows the pain that drug addiction causes.
She sees it in the face of her nephew, who’s battled an addiction to methamphetamine. She holds it in her hands when she shows visitors her parents’ black-and-white wedding photo, taken 31 years before her mother died of a prescription medication overdose.
For two years, it lived in her neighborhood near Mukilteo, transforming her quiet cul-de-sac into a place filled with fear. Meth addicts and dealers flocked to a house at the end of her street, forcing parents to keep kids inside and dial 911 almost every day.
"I hate drug abuse," she said. "That’s what drives me. I do this because I’m on a mission to save lives."
The Snohomish County Council will honor York on Wednesday with a resolution applauding her anti-drug group Lead on America and for her help in closing down the drug house in her neighborhood and 22 others.
"Her organization is a road map for people who live in a neighborhood with drug activity," Councilman Jeff Sax said. "That’s the only way we’re going to solve the drug problem, by working together."
York, 47, and her neighbors united and formed a group to fight the drug house on their Mukilteo-area street.
Neighbors organized phone trees, copied down license plate numbers, scrutinized those coming and going from the house and trained their children in how to talk to dispatchers when calling 911.
They also worked closely with Snohomish County sheriff’s deputies.
"The deputies became our heroes," York said. "The only time on our street I felt safe is when they were there, and I want to give back."
She decided to take what she’d learned and help other neighborhoods facing similar problems.
York and other Lead on America volunteers have shared their expertise with neighborhoods in Snohomish, King and Whatcom counties. They also helped put together a handbook with tips on how to spot a drug house and what to do about it.
"It comes down to awareness, letting people know there’s power in numbers and working together," York said.
But she knows closing down drug houses isn’t enough.
Lead on America, which became a nonprofit organization Dec. 29, also participates in the Snohomish County Youth Meth Summit and works to prevent drug use.
"I know that it’s making a difference," York said. "My nephew said to me, ‘You understand. Don’t stop.’ And I won’t."
Reporter Katherine Schiffner: 425-339-3436 or schiffner@heraldnet.com.
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