Working Together
to prevent substance misuse and promote healthy families
June 2019 E-Newsletter
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Our Kids Have Spoken. Are We Listening?
Massapequa Talks Town Hall Meeting
Parents and residents might not see it, but the kids say it’s there!
On average, Massapequa youth report initiating alcohol use at 13.6 years of age; 17.5% report they were in a situation they later regretted after drinking and 20.6% did not remember what happened. In addition, 33% of youth (grades 7-12) report being prescribed pain medication for injury or surgery (
2018 NYS OASAS PFS Youth Development Survey Results
).
Massapequa Takes Action Coalition
invites parents, youth and community residents to
Massapequa Talks: Why Here? on Monday, June 17
th
from 7:00 p.m.to 8:30 p.m. at Massapequa Park Village Hall, 151 Front Street, Massapequa Park.
The Town Hall Meeting seeks to raise awareness about youth substance misuse (Grades 7-12) and engage parents and community members to ensure a healthy future for Massapequas’ youth. For more information, contact
info@mtacoalition.com
or mtacoalition.com.
The Communities Talk: Town Hall Meeting was created with support from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) and will be one of over 800 Town Hall Meetings occurring throughout our country.
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The Grass Isn't Greener!
Research Continues: Legalization Harms Kids
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According to Smart Approaches to Marijuana, today’s highly potent marijuana is a significant threat to public health and safety. When kids use marijuana, they have a greater chance of addition since their brains are not developed until their 25; marijuana significantly impair judgement, motor coordination, and reaction time; and studies have found a direct relationship between blood THC concentration and impaired driving ability (
National Institute on Drug Abuse
).
In the Massapequas, 9.8% of 11th and 12th grade students reported driving a car or other vehicle in the past 30 days after they had been using marijuana or other drugs
(
2018 NYS OASAS PFS Youth Development Survey Results
).
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Take MTAC's Parenting Survey!
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Massapequa Takes Action Coalition is interested in learning more about parents' (with children 12 – 18) views on issues regarding underage drinking, marijuana, prescription drug and other drug misuse in the Massapequas. We are asking for your participation in a
voluntary, online and anonymous
survey.
Click here to take the survey
The information gathered will assist MTAC in the further development of our prevention efforts by defining underage drinking, youth marijuana use, prescription drug and substance misuse problems.
The survey will take about ten minutes
. We greatly appreciate your time and efforts to share your opinion!
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Summer Ahead: Make Time to Talk!
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Beware―
More Teens Begin Drinking in the Summer
PARENTS: The number of teens who begin using alcohol swells during the summer!
On an average day in June or July, more than 11,000 12- to 17-year-olds start drinking alcohol. For most months, the average is between 5,000 and 9,000 new users per day.
Keep your teens safe from the dangers that lurk beneath underage drinking! Talk with them about the consequences.
Click here
for MTAC prevention or parent communication tips.
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The Answer to
There's Nothing to Do
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Parents: Does your child ever have "nothing to do" on a hot summer night? If so, consider
Massapequas' Youth Park Summer Program
at Marjorie Post Park on Mondays and Wednesday nights from
7:00 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. from July 8th through August 14th! The parks program is supported by YES Community Counseling Center, its sponsors, Massapequa Public Schools and Massapequa Takes Action Coalition as well as community partners Town of Oyster Bay Department of Parks & Recreation, Nassau Police Department. and the Take Me Out to the Ballgame Foundation.
Click here for the flyer
.
For more information, please contact
YES Community Counseling Center at
516-799-3203.
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More Positive Alternatives
for Tweens & Teens!
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Massapequa Public Library invites all tweens and teens (Grades 6-12) for an After-Hours Scavenger Hunt as they LAUNCH Summer Reading!
To kickoff the Teen Summer Club, the library-wide scavenger hunt will be followed by doughnut decorating!!!
For more information contact Lisa Zuena or Pamela Pattwell at (516) 799-0770 ext. 1 or email lzuena@massapequalibrary.org.
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SECURE MONITOR DISPOSE Rx Drugs!
At its June 4, 2019 Nassau County Police Department Community Meeting, Commissioner Patrick Ryder announced that with the help of the Nassau County Police Department including many community organizations,noting
Massapequa Takes Action Coalition and YES Community Counseling
, non fatal overdoses decreased in the Massapequas by 35% from 2015 to 2018.
While any overdose or fatality is unacceptable in ours or any community, we hope all residents and organizations continue to work together with us to secure, monitor and dispose all prescription drugs in the home. We know that in the Massapequas, 71% of young adults who misuse prescription drugs get them from friends and families' medicine cabinets.
While we are seeing progress, keep in mind that when it comes to prescription drugs,
- As many as 1 in 4 people who receive prescription opioids long term for non-cancer pain in primary care settings will struggle with addiction (Centers for Disease Control);
- The use of opioid pain relievers exposes users to risks of overdose, dependence and addiction. Careful consideration should be taken when determining whether an opioid pain reliever is appropriate (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration);
- Remember to always ask your healthcare provider questions when prescribed pain medication or Rx drugs; Click here for a list of questions to ask your doctor when prescribed any drug; and
- Drug overdoses have now surpassed car crashes as the leading cause of accidental death in the United States (National Institutes on Drug Abuse).
Please join and sustain our prescription drug prevention efforts. Contact MTAC at info@mtacoalition.com or call (516) 799-3203 x131.
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The mission of Massapequa Takes Action Coalition is to prevent and reduce substance misuse and high-risk behaviors within the Massapequas. Since 1997, we have been collaborating with Massapequa Public Schools, parents, residents, law enforcement, clergy, private and non-profit agencies, businesses, and federal, state and local governments to enhance our efforts.
This e-newsletter was developed under grant number 1H79SPO80744-01 from the
ONDCP
and
SAMHSA
. The views, opinions, and content of this publication are those of the authors/contributors, and do not necessarily reflect the views, opinions or policies of the ONDCP, SAMHSA or HHS.
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