Brookhaven Town gives Support to ACES Program
Eastern Suffolk BOCES ACES Project to Combat Underage Drinking
Posted on January 23, 2012
ESBOCES and Brookhaven Town officials support the agency's ACES program to deter underage drinking.
Supervisor Mark Lesko and Councilwoman Jane Bonner have announced their support for the Eastern Suffolk BOCES Alcohol Coalition of Eastern Suffolk (ACES) project, “Not On Your Life” (NOYL). The purpose of the NOYL campaign is to promote awareness about the dangers of underage drinking and how to stop the sale and promotion of alcohol and tobacco products to underage individuals.
The first NOYL event of the year will be a training session for adults and high school students who would like to volunteer to become part of a four-person team focused on outreach to alcohol vendors in the Rocky Point and Shoreham-Wading River school district communities. The training session will be held on Wednesday, February 1 from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at the North Shore Public Library located at 250 Route 25A in Shoreham.
“Alcohol abuse among young people is a very serious problem and can lead to other high risk behavior,” said Supervisor Mark Lesko, “It is important that alcohol vendors participate in this program because they can be the first defense to help prevent children from getting started on what is a dangerous road ahead. I commend Eastern Suffolk BOCES for promoting awareness about the dangers of underage drinking.”
Councilwoman Jane Bonner said, “As a mother and former school board member, I am well aware of the challenges faced by young people during their formidable years, especially the temptation to abuse alcohol. I thank Eastern Suffolk BOCES for educating our children and businesses about the dangers of underage drinking and I will do whatever I can to help spread the word.”
The NOYL training session will be facilitated by an expert coalition builder, Robin McKinnon, MSW, from the Suffolk County Prevention Resource Center. It is open to high school students and adults, but middle school students will be considered if their parents participate. The ACES project, now in its third and final year and funded by a U.S. Department of Education grant, is a youth alcohol use reduction program of the Eastern Suffolk BOCES Student Assistance Service and members of the Brookhaven Town Youth Bureau sit on the ACES Advisory Council.
For more information about the training session, call Lucille Buergers, LCSW, ACES Project Director at 631-289-0078 or to RSVP e-mail lbuerger@esboces.org.
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