Mac Olsen,
Editor, Smoky River Express
Let’s give a shout-out to Vanisha Breault and Johnny Depp for helping others in their struggles with every day life.
Breault, who lives in Calgary, has helped her 19-year-old daughter, Eden Lal, to deal with her opioid addiction.
Globalnews.ca had a story about the mother-daughter duo on Aug. 14. As per the story, Lal was homeless and had an opioid addiction, and her mother had to deal with the stress of that situation.
“There were times I buried Eden and had done the funeral in my head. It’s hard not to go there as a parent,” Breault said. “It’s a miracle she’s alive to see where she’s come.”
“I had no idea where I lost myself and I didn’t know who I was,” Lal said. “My plan was just to use until I overdosed.”
However, Lal did not give up. Instead, she went into recovery and has been clean for seven months, the story continues.
It goes on to say that the two trained for a triathlon and Lal participated in her first event on Aug. 13. Her mother cheered from the sidelines.
It’s not just her daughter that Breault is helping. She has created the Tri Terminator organization to help other youth with addictions, to train for marathons, Ironmans and triathlons. Go to www.terminatorfoundation.com for more information.
It’s people like Breault who can make all the difference to help others address their substance abuses. Given all the information I have seen about Fentanyl and its variants in the last year or so – not to mention the tragic stories of people dying by overdosing – it’s good to see people like Breault doing what they can to help.
Johnny Depp has done his part too, through his alter ego, Captain Jack Sparrow of ‘The Pirates of the Caribbean’ fame.
Last week, he got into character and visited the B.C. Children’s Hospital. The globalnews.ca website has a story about this as well, dated Aug. 14.
Depp was in Vancouver filming a movie, and he took time out to visit the children. The globalnews.ca website features photos of Depp visiting the children and getting his picture taken with them and staff as well.
This is not the first time Depp has donned the Jack Sparrow identity to raise the spirits of children in need. He did the same thing while filming a ‘Pirates’ moving in Brisbane, Australia.
Depp visited the Lady Cilento Children’s Hospital, taking interest in those fighting cancer, says a brisbanetimes.com.au report dated July 7, 2015.
So kudos as well to Depp for uplifting the spirits of sick children. Wherever Depp goes, I hope he continues to provide this valuable service to those in need.
And the efforts of Breault and Depp should be an inspiration for society as a whole to contribute in their own ways to humanitarian and charitable causes.
Whether it’s opening a door for a senior citizen, or helping someone through their addiction struggles, that assistance can certainly make all the difference in the world.