11/21/12 IMP.A.C.T. UPDATE Nov ember 2012 IMPACT UPDATE November 2012 Happy Thanksgiving! The Norman Rockwell illustration above depicts the quintessential Thanksgiving family dinner. The frequent sharing of a meal like the one depicted has a positive impact on the emotional health and well-being of our kids. We wish you and your family a very Happy Thanksgiving. Please forward this newsletter on to friends, family and any others you think would benefit from the information featured. If you would like to contact us or become involved in IMP.A.C.T., please e-mail us at [email protected]. How to Talk to Your Kids About Drugs & Alcohol Middle School Parent Cafe Wednesday, November 14 7 - 8:30 pm Percy Julian Middle School 416 S. Ridgeland, Oak Park Please join us November 14th at 7 pm for an engaging Parent Cafe to discuss Prevention and Intervention Strategies to help your pre-teens and teens make healthy decisions regarding alcohol and substance use. You will hear: What your kids reported about drug and alcohol use in the Illinois Youth Survey taken by them in January 2012. How to talk with your kids regarding the dangers of substance use and your expectations regarding their behavior. https://ui.constantcontact.com/v isualeditor/v isual_editor_prev iew.jsp?agent.uid=1111506168856&f orm… Did you know... Ma ny ki ds toda y a re rumma gi ng through fa mi l y medi ci ne ca bi nets to fi nd unus ed pres cri pti on drugs to us e or to s el l . You ca n hel p by ta l ki ng wi th your chi l d a bout thi s da ngerous trend a nd by s a fel y di s pos i ng of your unus ed pa i n medi ca ti on or other drugs . They s houl d not be 1/4 11/21/12 IMP.A.C.T. UPDATE Nov ember 2012 About new ordinances that were passed in OP and RF regarding teen substance use. We encourage all middle school parents or caregivers to attend. To provide for ample seating, reservations are appreciated. Please RSVP by clicking here. This ParentCafe is co-sponsored by IMP.A.C.T.,District 97, and Oak Park Township Youth Services. New Laws. New Statistics. New Realities. Sr. Michelle Germanson, President of Trinity High School inspired the more than 150 people attendees at the October 24th Community-wide Forum at the 19th Century Club to take responsibility for empowering our kids to make positive lifelong choices regarding alcohol and substance use. pl a ced i n your ga rba ge for pi ck-up nor fl us hed down the dra i n. You ca n bri ng them to the fol l owi ng Chi ca go Pol i ce Depa rtment - cl os e to Oa k Pa rk a nd Ri ver Fores t 24 hours a da y: Chicago Police Dept Gra nd/Centra l 5555 W. Gra nd October 24th Forum - Sr Michelle Germanson, Trinity HS Chiefs of Police from River Forest and Oak Park -- Greg Weiss and Rick Tanksley , along with Deputy Chief Anthony Ambrose and Commander Keenan Williams presented new local ordinances that were passed in Oak Park and River Forest regarding teen substance and alcohol use. Parents and teens should be familiar with these new ordinances. Click for a brochure and FAQs. 312-744-7672 Look for a BLUE drop off box i n the l obby Please note: They DO NOT accept needles (i.e. expired EpiPens or other injectables). You can usually return those to your pharmacy for proper disposal. John Williams, Director of Youth Services of OP & RF Townships discussed the Illinois Youth Survey (IYS) results from Where to turn Districts 200, 97 and 90. The IYS numbers show that our 10th and 12th graders are still using marijuana and alcohol more than their peers across Illinois and the nation -- almost twice the national average for Local Resources marijuana use. For the first time the middle schools participated in the survey. While 6th graders are not yet involved, more than a third of 8th Network of Care graders report having used alcohol, marijuana or tobacco at least once click here in the past year. Click here for a synopsis of the results. Alanon/Alateen Tom T., 708.524.9360 New realities of using marijuana and alcohol use were also presented www.thri vecc.org by several experts. Their presentations should have been reviewed by Face-It Colorado and Washington residents prior to the referendums in those Bert Patania, 708.445.2727 states. You can access videos of their presentations here: Families Anonymous Ann S., 708.848.2968 Claudia Evenson, Rosecrance Dr. Mariann Piano, Professor and Dept Chair of Dept of Biobehavioral Science in the College of Nursing at the University of Illinois at Chicago View a video of each speaker's presentation by clicking on their name. https://ui.constantcontact.com/v isualeditor/v isual_editor_prev iew.jsp?agent.uid=1111506168856&f orm… OPRF High School Dana Horowitz, 708.434.3615 Rosecrance http://www.rosecrance.org/ 888.928.5278 24/7 11/21/12 IMP.A.C.T. UPDATE Nov ember 2012 Thanks to all who came and all those who helped to make the Forum a success. Frequent Family Dinners Reduce Teen Substance Use Sometimes, the simplest act has the most profound impact. Having dinner as a family is one amazing example. Over the past 17 years, CASA Columbia's national survey of teens and parents has consistently found a relationship between the frequency of family dinners and teen drinking, smoking and drug use. According to the study, teens who have infrequent family dinners (fewer than three per week) are almost four times likelier to have used tobacco, more than twice as likely to have used alcohol, and two-and-a -half times likelier to have used marijuana than teens who have frequent family dinners (five to seven per week). See Figure 2.A below. It's not the eating that's important. It's the sharing of stories, thoughts, impressions, jokes and daily news that makes this time together valuable. If your family schedule prevents frequent family dinners, use the time spent together in the car, or doing homework in the evening to make those important daily connections with your children. Thrive Counseling Center of Oak Park & River Forest www.thrivecc.org 708.383.7500 Youth Services of Oak Park & River Forest Townships John Williams, Bert Patania, 708.445.2727 National Resources Partnership at DrugFree.org www.drugfree.org Decoder Parent Monthly E-mail www.decoder.drugfree.org MADD Events and Website Parent Handbook Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration www.toosmarttostart National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) www.niaaa.nih.gov National Institute on Drug Abuse: www.drugabuse.gov For Students: www.abovetheinfluence.com www.toosmarttostart www.teens.drugabuse.gov www.staysharp.us The National Center on Substance Abuse at Columbia University (CASA), The Importance of Family Dinners VII Study, September 2011. https://ui.constantcontact.com/v isualeditor/v isual_editor_prev iew.jsp?agent.uid=1111506168856&f orm… 3/4 11/21/12 IMP.A.C.T. UPDATE Nov ember 2012 Upcoming Dates and Events NOVEMBER November 14, 7 pm - District 97 Parent Cafe, Julian Middle School. To RSVP, click here. November 26, 7 pm - IMP.A.C.T. Monthly Leadership Meeting, 105 S. Oak Park Ave, Oak Park Contact Us We hope you've found this newsletter useful and that we will see you at one or many of our upcoming events. We'd appreciate your feedback on what you'd like to know about or see in a newsletter. Please contact us at [email protected]. IMP.A.C.T. Parents And Community Together to reduce youth drug & alcohol use Contact Information Kristine Raino-Ogden IMP.A.C.T. Chair Forward email This email was sent to [email protected] by [email protected] | Update Profile/Email Address | Instant removal with SafeUnsubscribe™ | Privacy Policy. IMPACT | 559 Edgewood Place | River Forest | IL | 60305 https://ui.constantcontact.com/v isualeditor/v isual_editor_prev iew.jsp?agent.uid=1111506168856&f orm… 4/4