The Taylor Meyer tragedy has lead to an increase awareness of teen drinking. Kathi Meyer is interviewed in this video from the Norfolk County District Attorney, William Keating.
Note: Email subscribers will need to click through to the web site to view the video.
Other info on teen drinking:
The W.A.S.T.E.D presentation at Franklin High School
Other videos from the Norfolk District Attorney can be found here
Showing posts with label Substance abuse. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Substance abuse. Show all posts
Thursday, September 10, 2009
Friday, February 6, 2009
"It's just too big a deal to leave to chance"
I mentioned having a choice on where to go Thursday evening: The Financial Planning Committee or the WASTED panel discussion at Franklin High School. I chose the Financial Planning meeting and did my reporting here.
Our teen drinking problem, really more broadly terms substance abuse problem, because it is not just drinking, touches all the communities around us. Here is a report on the effort in Medway.
MEDWAY —
Our teen drinking problem, really more broadly terms substance abuse problem, because it is not just drinking, touches all the communities around us. Here is a report on the effort in Medway.
MEDWAY —
Marilyn Belmonte has a message for parents who say underage drinking is just a matter of kids being kids: It's a whole new world out there.
"There's a real change in the mentality," said Belmonte, a youth substance abuse prevention coordinator, to a group of parents assembled at Medway High School Wednesday night for "Turning Off the Tap," a presentation about underage drinking.
Recent incidents like the alcohol-related death of Plainville teen Taylor Meyer last October have moved the subject to the front burner, and the program detailed alarming new trends in teenage alcohol use, including extreme drinking games and binging.
"It really has changed," Belmonte said. Kids in the instant-gratification age are looking for quick fixes, and new trends, such as flavored alcohol. Walk into any store, she said, and you'll find shelves lined with attractive packages of vodkas in kid-friendly watermelon and cherry, perfect for teens looking to consume straight alcohol. Add in energy drinks as popular mixers and you've got the perfect storm, she said.
"They're mixing alcohol, which is a depressant, with energy drinks, which are stimulants, and the battle gets fought out in the heart," said Belmonte.
Parents can help by laying down the law. Recent studies show that the kids least likely to drink are those whose parents make it clear that such behavior is off limits.
Read the full article in the Milford Daily News here.
Sunday, January 25, 2009
FM #29 - This week in Franklin, MA
This is the 29th in a series of podcasts on what is happening in Franklin, MA. In this session, I talk about how much snow removal we should do and about the teen substance abuse problem that Bill Phillips and his New Beginnings Program addresses.
Time: 9 minutes, 20 seconds
MP3 File
Session Notes
Music intro
My intro
FM #29
This podcast for Franklin Matters is number 29 in the series. In this session, I’ll focus on what you should know about what is happening this week in Franklin, MA.
From the Town Council meeting 1/21/09, there was a very good presentation on the DPW and their snow removal efforts. Robert Cantoreggi, DPW Director was accompanied by Jim Estabrook, Graphical Information Systems Manager, to make the presentation. The video of the Town Council meeting is available on the town website. The presentation itself is also available on Franklin Matters.
You should note that the town website has added a link in the left column to allow you to go directly to the live video feeds and to the video archives. This is a simple navigation aid that will have lasting benefits. Thanks very much for putting this link in place. I have also added a link in the meetings for 2009 section.
In these days of cost cutting, one discussion we should have is how much should we spend on the snow removal? If you travel into some of the upstate Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont communities, they do not always plow their roads down to the pavement like we do here. There are other examples in state as well as out of state. You can travel on them. It is not a safety issue from a passageway point of view. You would need to travel slower as they remain snow covered and hence would tend to be slippery.
The money for salt and labor is effective only for as a short term benefit. Since a million dollars provides the salary and benefits for about 20 employees in the town. I would rather spend the money to keep people on the payroll rather than toss it away on road salt and snow removal.
What do you think?
Should we continue to pay whatever it takes to plow and sand our roads as we are today or should we consider cutting back, especially to save the money for other priorities? I’d be interested in hearing what you have to say on this.
The Town Council has asked the DPW Director to come back with some alternatives of reducing cost by 10 or 20 percent. Stay tuned into this discussion to see what happens.
A second item from the Town Council meeting will be worth watching, The Police Dept conducted a sting operation with 28 establishments in town that serve liquor and apparently caught two serving minors. I am not a lawyer but based upon what was reported in the Milford Daily News, they may not have a solid case on one of the two establishments. The hearing on the 4th should be interesting.
Let me be clear, the sting was a good thing. We do need to monitor how our teenagers get access to alcohol. The drinking and substance abuse amongst our teens is a problem that needs to be addressed. Bill Phillips has stated that you can get alcohol, drugs and weapons in any high school. In one school, there was a cooler in the student’s vehicle in the school parking lot to serve the beer cold. Bill referenced these and other stories during the WASTED presentation at Franklin High School in December. If you have not yet listened to that, I do recommend it. It is powerful material.
Bill’s program, New Beginnings, is in jeopardy. He had been funded by the MA Dept of Public Health. Unfortunately, his grant has been cut in this recent round of state budget cuts. The program has addressed over 200,000 teenagers since it was established in 1985. He currently is providing services to over 150 teenagers.
On the night he presented at Franklin High, he acknowledged receiving 19 emails from Franklin students after talking with them during the assemblies that day. 19 students by 4:00 PM that day had already reached out to Bill for help. How many of those are in jeopardy of losing Bill’s support right now? I don’t know but the odds are that some from Franklin are in the bunch.
I have started to help Bill in raising additional funds for his program. You may have noticed the Virgin Atlantic contest posting on Franklin Matters. This is just one step in the process of raising awareness for his program. I think his program is effective. I think it is valuable. I think it needs to raise additional funds to keep operating.
If you can help in anyway, I would appreciate it. Making a contribution is one way. You can contribute directly via his web site.
If you know of any company or foundation that Bill could appeal to for a contribution, please let me know. Or contact Bill directly.
If you would like to help spread the word on keeping the program alive, please let Bill or I know.
And to close this session, let’s look at what is coming up this week: there is a
Check them out.
Keep informed
and stay warm!
----- -----
This podcast has been a public service provided to my fellow citizens of Franklin, MA
For additional information, please visit Franklinmatters.blogspot.com/
If you have questions or comments you can reach me directly at shersteve @ gmail dot com
The musical intro and closing is from the Podsafe Music Network
Jon Schmidt - Powerful Exhilarating Piano Music
Time: 9 minutes, 20 seconds
MP3 File
Session Notes
Music intro
My intro
FM #29
This podcast for Franklin Matters is number 29 in the series. In this session, I’ll focus on what you should know about what is happening this week in Franklin, MA.
From the Town Council meeting 1/21/09, there was a very good presentation on the DPW and their snow removal efforts. Robert Cantoreggi, DPW Director was accompanied by Jim Estabrook, Graphical Information Systems Manager, to make the presentation. The video of the Town Council meeting is available on the town website. The presentation itself is also available on Franklin Matters.
You should note that the town website has added a link in the left column to allow you to go directly to the live video feeds and to the video archives. This is a simple navigation aid that will have lasting benefits. Thanks very much for putting this link in place. I have also added a link in the meetings for 2009 section.
In these days of cost cutting, one discussion we should have is how much should we spend on the snow removal? If you travel into some of the upstate Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont communities, they do not always plow their roads down to the pavement like we do here. There are other examples in state as well as out of state. You can travel on them. It is not a safety issue from a passageway point of view. You would need to travel slower as they remain snow covered and hence would tend to be slippery.
The money for salt and labor is effective only for as a short term benefit. Since a million dollars provides the salary and benefits for about 20 employees in the town. I would rather spend the money to keep people on the payroll rather than toss it away on road salt and snow removal.
What do you think?
Should we continue to pay whatever it takes to plow and sand our roads as we are today or should we consider cutting back, especially to save the money for other priorities? I’d be interested in hearing what you have to say on this.
The Town Council has asked the DPW Director to come back with some alternatives of reducing cost by 10 or 20 percent. Stay tuned into this discussion to see what happens.
A second item from the Town Council meeting will be worth watching, The Police Dept conducted a sting operation with 28 establishments in town that serve liquor and apparently caught two serving minors. I am not a lawyer but based upon what was reported in the Milford Daily News, they may not have a solid case on one of the two establishments. The hearing on the 4th should be interesting.
Let me be clear, the sting was a good thing. We do need to monitor how our teenagers get access to alcohol. The drinking and substance abuse amongst our teens is a problem that needs to be addressed. Bill Phillips has stated that you can get alcohol, drugs and weapons in any high school. In one school, there was a cooler in the student’s vehicle in the school parking lot to serve the beer cold. Bill referenced these and other stories during the WASTED presentation at Franklin High School in December. If you have not yet listened to that, I do recommend it. It is powerful material.
Bill’s program, New Beginnings, is in jeopardy. He had been funded by the MA Dept of Public Health. Unfortunately, his grant has been cut in this recent round of state budget cuts. The program has addressed over 200,000 teenagers since it was established in 1985. He currently is providing services to over 150 teenagers.
On the night he presented at Franklin High, he acknowledged receiving 19 emails from Franklin students after talking with them during the assemblies that day. 19 students by 4:00 PM that day had already reached out to Bill for help. How many of those are in jeopardy of losing Bill’s support right now? I don’t know but the odds are that some from Franklin are in the bunch.
I have started to help Bill in raising additional funds for his program. You may have noticed the Virgin Atlantic contest posting on Franklin Matters. This is just one step in the process of raising awareness for his program. I think his program is effective. I think it is valuable. I think it needs to raise additional funds to keep operating.
If you can help in anyway, I would appreciate it. Making a contribution is one way. You can contribute directly via his web site.
If you know of any company or foundation that Bill could appeal to for a contribution, please let me know. Or contact Bill directly.
If you would like to help spread the word on keeping the program alive, please let Bill or I know.
And to close this session, let’s look at what is coming up this week: there is a
- Planning Board meeting on Monday
- School Committee meeting on Tuesday
- Financial Planning Committee is scheduled for Thursday
Check them out.
Keep informed
and stay warm!
----- -----
This podcast has been a public service provided to my fellow citizens of Franklin, MA
For additional information, please visit Franklinmatters.blogspot.com/
If you have questions or comments you can reach me directly at shersteve @ gmail dot com
The musical intro and closing is from the Podsafe Music Network
Jon Schmidt - Powerful Exhilarating Piano Music
"I like the sting, it's good"
GHS
FRANKLIN —
Two bars in town may temporarily lose their liquor licenses after allegedly serving alcohol to teens working with Franklin Police in an age compliance check, police said.
Workers at the Pepper Terrace Restaurant, at 400 Franklin Village Drive, and Cottage Street Pub & Grill, at 158 Cottage St., allegedly sold the teens beer on Saturday, Jan. 17, said Lt. Thomas Lynch.
"Do they look like they're 21? No they don't," Lynch said, explaining that police specifically instructed the teens not to wear make-up, jewelry, or dress up to appear older.
The goal, he said, was to check whether the establishments would serve people who were clearly younger than 21 years old.
Read the full article on the results of this sting operation in the Milford Daily News here
Saturday, January 24, 2009
Our teens need your help
Since 1985, the New Beginnings Program (NBP) has provided a comprehensive wellness initiative for schools, parents and communities for hundreds of youth involved in drug and alcohol addiction. The presentations, classes, one-to-one education, and true life testimonies have made a substantial impact. As a result of the recent cuts in funding from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, NBP has cut its staff, supplies and other expenditures jeopardizing the support for over 120 youth currently in the program.
The New Beginnings Program faces a critical need for financial resources to sustain the counseling services that our youth at risk require.
Please visit the NBP website to find information regarding its services, successes, and to make a contribution.
Bill Phillips, the founder of New Beginnings, was a central part of the WASTED presentation at Franklin High School in December, 2008.
You can help by casting your vote in support of this program here:
http://revolutiontakesflight.com/items/Help_Teens_with_Substance_Abuse?c=0
Free registration will be required to cast your vote.
NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. A PURCHASE WILL NOT INCREASE YOUR CHANCES OF WINNING. LEGAL RESIDENTS OF MA, 21 YEARS AND OLDER. VOID OUTSIDE OF MA AND WHERE PROHIBITED. Sweepstakes ends: 2/6/09.
For Official Rules and prize descriptions and odds disclosure, visit http://www.revolutiontakesflight.com. Sponsor: Virgin America, 555 Airport Blvd., 4th Floor, Burlingame, CA 94010.
Thursday, January 22, 2009
"Franklin does not have "any more or less" drugs than any other community"
GHS
FRANKLIN —
In what police say is likely the biggest heroin bust in Franklin's history, Franklin Police and the Norfolk County Police Anti-Crime Task Force seized 324 grams of heroin from a Providence man who sold $150 worth of cocaine to an undercover officer.
In addition to the $32,000 worth of heroin, police also seized 12 grams of cocaine, with an estimated street value of $500 to $1,000, and $4,339 in cash during the arrest at 599 Old West Central St. (Rte. 140), police said.
"It's a very significant bust. Most people involved in the investigation and arrest, even the narcotics guys, they'd never seen that much heroin in any one place before this," said Franklin Lt. Thomas Lynch.
"That was the most (heroin seized) in one incident for one individual Franklin has ever had. In the 12 years I've been in law enforcement, I've never seen that much heroin in one place," said Lynch.
Read the full article on the heroin bust in the Milford Daily News here
Our teens have admitted struggling with substance abuse. You can check out the WASTED presentation here.
Monday, December 22, 2008
"There's really been a culture change"
Over the past decade, Revere has seen significant statistical drops in the percentage of middle school and high school students who use and abuse alcohol, coinciding with what local officials, parents, and students themselves say has been a shift in attitudes about drinking.
That's no accident. Since 1997, Massachusetts General Hospital and Partners HealthCare have spent $4.4 million to fund a program called Revere CARES, designed to reduce teen drinking and substance abuse in a community where adults themselves abused alcohol and drugs at considerably higher rates than the state as a whole.
....
The data show particular improvement among middle schoolers' behavior in the five years since Revere CARES launched a campaign called the "Power of Know," which included getting more than 1,000 parents of adolescents to sign cards pledging to talk with their children about alcohol, tobacco, and drugs, listen to their kids, and get to know their children's friends and their parents.
Bold for my emphasis
Read the full article in the Boston Globe here
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