AREA RESIDENT APPEARS ON ALCOHOL-ABUSE VIDEO.

Byline: Greg Botonis Daily News Staff Writer

The horror of a lifetime of drinking and the tragedy that follows affects millions of people every year.

Health problems, troubles at work and losing a family are all tragic effects that Raymond Chavira knows all to well.

``I started drinking at 17,'' said Chavira. ``It was right after World War II, and I was in junior college. I figured, why not; all these GIs were drinking, too.''

Chavira continued to drink for the next 25 years - while alcohol took control of his life and ended up destroying his career as a teacher.

``It was a wonder I never got caught,'' said Chavira. ``I ended up leaving. It just got too hard. I lost my family soon after, and I just didn't quit.''

Eventually, Chavira's body began to shut down. Because of the support and encouragement of friends, he finally admitted himself to a state alcoholism ward and slowly began to rebuild his shattered life.

``I went back to being a probation officer,'' said Chavira. ``That's what I did before teaching. I thought I might be able to help prevent people from going through what I did.''

Chavira is now a member of the Commission on Alcoholism for the Los Angeles County and was invited by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse to share his experiences on video as part of a national campaign to stop the abuse of alcohol.

The campaign, called National Alcohol Screening Day, will be held next April and is directed to motivate people to seek help.

The focus of the video is for participants to share their experiences from beginning stages of abuse through the decision to quit. During the screening day, people who attend will view the video while waiting to meet with an alcohol counselor.

``Education is the key,'' said Chavira, a Los Angeles County probation officer who lives in Palmdale. ``This isn't about an individual problem. This is about the community. The community has an alcoholism problem as I did as an individual.''

Chavira has begun work with local and state agencies to try to limit the number of alcohol outlets and ease the problems of underage drinking by raising taxes to make it more difficult for minors to afford.

The target group for many of Chavira's plans are Latinos. Being an executive member of the Latino Council on Alcohol and Tobacco, a national, nonprofit organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., he has dealt with the alcohol problem of the Latino community directly.

``Latinos and other Hispanics are the No. 1 ethnic group involved in DUIs and other alcohol-related problems,'' said Chavira. ``It's an embarrassment to our ethnic heritage. We need to stop tearing down our lives and make them better. We can become role models.''

The screening day will be held nationwide, but exact locations are not yet scheduled.

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PHOTO CHAVIRA