SUN VALLEY : Girl Recalls Deaths From Gangs, Drugs

When Irene Isysais of Sun Valley lost her parents to drugs and gangs, the last thing she wanted to do was talk about their deaths. But when the 17-year-old was asked to share her experiences with a group of peers, her words--and tears--poured out.

“You guys think you know what’s cool, wearing your baggy clothes and partying,” Irene told about 25 high school students Wednesday, most of them no older than herself. “This is the reality part of it.”

With those words, she passed around a handmade photo album of her father, Daniel, and mother, Frances. On one page, the pictures revealed two smiling parents. The flip side of the album showed their funerals.

“My dad died when I was 6 of gangs,” she said somberly as the youths gazed at the photos. “My mom died last July shooting up heroin and got a heart infection. My uncle died of drugs in January.”

As a result of her family’s deaths and drug abuse, Irene said she now finds herself alone, living with friends in Sun Valley, trying to get back into school. “I never thought this stuff would happen to me,” she said. “I wish I had parents to go to. You are lucky if you have parents that care about you.”

The hourlong program at James Monroe High School in North Hills on Wednesday included several parolees and other speakers from Project G.A.N.G. (Group Against Narcotics and Guns). Those attending were students from the federally funded project for schools to divert at-risk students from drug and alcohol abuse.

Among the students were 15-year-old LaQuiesha Greene of Los Angeles, a 10th-grader who was quietly moved by Wednesday’s testimonials, which included horror stories on prison life and drug addiction.

“They show people how it is,” LaQuiesha said. “They show that it ain’t all fun and games.”

For Irene, the 10-minute talk was a form of therapy that allowed her to cry softly afterward. It was the first time that she has spoken publicly of her parents’ deaths, but it would not be the last time she will warn other students about keeping drugs and gangs out of their homes.

“If the kids only knew,” she said as she clutched her parents’ pictures. “I miss them like crazy. It feels lonely.”