St. Bernard Parish groups band together to commit to a drug-free community under the slogan: “Participate – Be a Life-Saver”; They are using the annual drug-prevention Red Ribbon Week in the schools, Oct. 15-19, as a kickoff for the effort

There’s more than one way to be a life-saver.

Certainly, firefighters, police officers, doctors, paramedics save lives. But so can a teacher who connects with a student and guides them back from a road that could have led to their personal destruction. So can parents, clergy, service organizations, mentors of young people, as well as numerous other examples in everyday life.

And so also can a community be a life-saver, when it is staring in the face of an epidemic and bands together to stop it.

That’s the way many groups in St. Bernard Parish are reacting to the threat of drug abuse in our parish.

Parents, school officials, business leaders, the medical community, churches, the judiciary, the Sheriff’s Office, Parish Government, for example, are banding together to commit to a drug-free community under the slogan: “Participate – Be a Life-Saver.”

They are using the annual Red Ribbon Week in the schools, Oct. 15-19, as a kickoff for the effort. The week will see an emphasis on getting across a drug prevention message to students, under the guidance of Charles Cassar, Drug-free Schools Coordinator.

A driving force of the “Participate – Be a Life-Saver’’ move has been Dan Schneider, a pharmacist who years ago lost a son to violence related to drug abuse; and is supported by Sheriff James Pohlmann, Schools Superintendent Doris Voitier, Parish Government and Maj. Chad Clark, head of the sheriff’s Special Investigations Division which includes the Narcotics Unit as well as others in the community.

The group adopted a resolution on the importance of parents and other parish residents focusing on trying to reduce as much as possible drug abuse through educational efforts, re-hab treatment for users and prison time for drug-dealers.

Some points of the resolution include:

“In an effort to work toward a drug-free community:

“We as a Community are making a statement that we are strongly committed to working towards a Drug Free Community. Our efforts are important. We can save lives, reduce crime and accidents, lower insurance cost, improve our quality of life, increase our property values. The life you save may be your friend, student, your child or grandchild. Participate. Be a Lifesaver.

“Alcohol, which some may not understand is a drug, and other drug abuse in our parish and nation has reached epidemic stages (nationally 133,300 premature drug related deaths a year or 1 death every 4 minutes), and the 15-24 year old age group is dying at a faster rate than any other age group.

“Drug abuse and addiction is the primary cause for most of our community’s crime, many of our accidents, destruction of productive lives and family tragedies.

“It is imperative that visible, unified prevention education efforts by community members be launched to reduce the demand for drugs; while supporting our police in drug reduction efforts.

“St. Bernard Parish School Board will lead the efforts of our community by improving drug education and prevention, by embedding lessons in elementary, middle, and throughout high school courses.

“The biggest jump in the risk of teen drug use occurs when a child moves from middle to high school; we will increase our education efforts in 9th grade. We will cover understanding drugs and the biological and psychological destructive effects they cause on their developing brain, reasons teens try and use drugs, understanding drug addiction and its consequences, how help can be gotten, social responsibility, personal responsibility and non –violent conflict resolution.

“We will provide to parents take-home information and web sites information to encourage parental involvement.

“Included with traditional efforts to educate and encourage students to remain drug-free, we want to educate and encourage students to become advocates against drug use. We want to educate and encourage why it is a social responsibility to report drug use, drug dealing and criminal activity (anonymously if preferable) to help parents, teachers, adult authorities, or police; reduce drug destruction.

“We will encourage and support drug addiction treatment, rehab in and out of jail; and drug court like programs The goal is to help create a drug free and reduced crime community and to save lives.”