On Wednesday 20th October 1999, the school was fortunate to have a visit from Angela Woods, the mother of Anna Woods, a Sydney teenager who died from the effects of a single tablet of Ecstasy, four years ago. Probably some parents recall the intense media coverage of the event at the time.

Angela now spends a lot of her time visiting schools and youth and parent groups of all sorts, telling Anna’s story, encouraging parents to develop a supportive and honest relationship with their children, and inspiring young people to reject the drug culture with her simple but moving message. She spoke to SOTE senior school students, i.e. year eight and up, and was uncompromising in describing the effects of drugs on immature bodies and especially on the brain.

She drew a very vivid picture of Anna as a person and related the circumstances of her Ecstasy use, her reaction to the drug and subsequent death over a period of three days, in a very direct and open manner. Her lack of sentimentality or emotionalism helped create a very powerful impact and her frankness was appreciated by all the students and teachers who heard her speak.

To the parents she said that telling your children you love them is not enough, that we have a responsibility to educate them and provide them with accurate information to enable them to make educated decisions. Angela felt she had failed her daughter in this respect and since Anna’s death has educated herself about drugs in order to disseminate truthful information to young people and teenagers wherever she is asked to speak.

Her message to the students was that they have a responsibility to look after themselves; that there are no safe drugs, they are all poisons made by men for money; and that people will tell lies about drugs in order to sell them.

She recommended the student’s to read “Anna’s Story” because it is an honest book, with no lies about drugs. She also recommended a drug information book called “The Great Brain Robbery” which is available in the SOTE library.

Angela made a great impression on her audience, with several of the students commenting that they were able to accept what she had to say because it had the authenticity of a deeply personal and painful experience.

Thanks to Pam Burleigh, Warwick Youth Worker, for arranging Angela’s visit to SOTE.

		Helen O’Brien is a parent at the School of Total Education. She has two children who have attended the School from pre-school to year 12 and currently has grandchildren at the School.

This article was written for publication in the SOTE Newsletter. (Published on web site: September 2001)

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