Evidence Tech Kierstin Smuda of the Tombstone's Marshals Office teamed up with Drug Free AZ to put on a presentation regarding prescription drugs held at Tombstone High School on Monday.

It is no secret that the illegal use of prescription drugs has become more of a problem within the last decade and Smuda wanted to put something together to help the students realize the effects of prescription drugs.

"The drugs that they're using if not prescribed by a doctor are deadly," Smuda said. "You can overdose easily. It's very dangerous stuff that they're using."

Smuda said the abuse of prescription drugs has been an issue at Tombstone High with an estimated six to seven cases filed last year, which is why she wanted to get involved.

Principal Robert Devere said that they are always doing things outside of the regular high school curriculum to bring awareness to different issues and this is just another way to help the students understand the dangers of prescription drugs.

"It's not that we've got a particular problem here. Our nation has a problem," Devere said. "This is awareness. We give them the information. The kids are smart. Hopefully they will turn the other way and not do it when offered."

The presentation was held at 9 a.m. in the high school's gym where Cindy Sierzchula, a member of the 3 Moms program, came to share her story about losing her daughter Courtney at the age of 17 to the prescription drug OxyContin.

The 3 Moms volunteer program consists of four mothers who have all lost their children unexpectedly to the abuse of prescription drugs with the idea "to encourage everyone who hears their message to share it with at least three other moms or caregivers of children."

"I figured that's probably the best way to get these kids attention because as a teenager it's not fun to just sit and look at PowerPoint's," Smuda said. "Someone telling them 'yea I lost my kid because of this, they died,' might actually get their attention better and they will hopefully stop using them because they realize the dangers of it."

According to Drug Free AZ, students in grades 8-12 are abusing prescription pain relievers such as OxyContin or Vicodin frequently.

In Arizona, one in four 12th graders, one in five 10th graders
and one in ten 8th graders have abused prescription pain relievers
to get high.

What these users fail to realize is the abuse of these prescription drugs are as "dangerous, addictive and deadly as using heroin."

Shelly Mowrey, senior director of Drug Free AZ and developer of the 3 Moms program, said that it is extremely important for these moms to go out and speak on their experiences.

In doing so, they help raise awareness so that other mothers don't lose their children.

"It has to be a community effort," Mowrey said. "It has to be parents taking part. It has to be youth getting education about it.It has to be the teachers at the school receiving information to help identify students. It has to be an enforcement issue. It has to be multifaceted in order for it to be effective," she said.