Wednesday, March 26, 2008
CANFIELD — The Mahoning Valley is one of hundreds of communities nationwide that will conduct Underage Drinking Prevention/National Town Hall meetings Tuesday to raise awareness about underage drinking.
Locally the Mahoning County Family and Children First Council and the Coalition for Capable and Healthy Youth, in collaboration with the federal government’s Interagency Coordinating Committee for the Prevention of Underage Drinking, is sponsoring the event from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Mahoning County Experimental Farm, state Route 46 across from the Canfield Fairgrounds.
Parents, teachers, officials, youth and other community members will learn about the impact that underage drinking has on the community and develop possible ways to address this issue.
Panel members who will discuss the matter are: Larry Moliterno, chief executive officer for Meridian Services; Lt. Chris Heverly, Ohio State Highway Patrol, Canfield Post; Mahoning County Juvenile Judge Theresa Dellick; Jerry Carter, Neil Kennedy Recovery Clinic; and state Senator John Boccieri, D-33rd, of new Middletown.
New data show that about 29 percent of youths age 12 to 20 have used alcohol.
By the time they reach eighth grade, 41 percent of adolescents have had at least one drink, and almost 20 percent report having been drunk, event organizers said.
For more information, call Prevention Partners Plus at (330) 743-6671.