MOMS
ON A MISSION
By
Kass Foster, Louise Habicht, Kathleen Dobbs and Susan Foose
Parent to Parent launched the
Just a Nickel a Gallon Campaign to urge New Jersey’s
policy makers to increase the alcohol tax by a small amount and
earmark the anticipated $10 million from the tax increase to treat
an additional 3,800 state residents who have an alcohol or drug
problem. Gov. Jon Corzine, just a month after the
campaign began, took a courageous step by calling
for an alcohol tax increase of five cents per gallon on beer,
and ten cents per gallon on wine and liquor. The Governor’s
budget also designates $2 million for capital improvements at addiction
treatment facilities. The Governor’s proposed alcohol tax
increase is welcomed but the proposal for capital improvement, while
well intended, falls short of the Just a Nickel A Gallon campaign’s
objective.
Parent
to Parent's Just a Nickel Campaign Kit includes: Fundraising
Jugs, Tool Kit, Door Hangers and fact sheet.
Please join the Just A Nickel a Gallon campaign to save the
lives of 3,800 more individuals in need of addiction treatment.
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A
long-term investment in bricks and mortar means
little in terms of saving flesh and blood in the short-term-
flesh and blood some of us lost when our sons were
wait-listed for treatment for their addiction and died before
being admitted. Parent
to Parent formed to help spare other parents
this experience.
Parent to Parent’s position is
that the best use of revenue from the proposed alcohol tax
increase should first be focused on providing immediate addiction
care for those that so desperately need it but are not able
to access it. |
Parent
to Parent is half way toward the campaign's stated objectives.
Doubters do not know us Moms very well. We
look forward to getting better acquainted with the governor and
the state legislators as we move toward a dedication of revenue
for addiction treatment.
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NJ
HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS TO PERFORM AT THE 2006 SHOUT DOWN DRUGS COMPETITION
On
Thursday, May 18, 2006, high school students from 16 different
counties will grace the stage of the Wilkins Theatre at
Kean University in Union, New Jersey and perform original
music as finalists in the Partnership
for a Drug-Free New Jersey’s (PDFNJ)
statewide drug prevention initiative exclusively targeting
high school students, New Jersey Shouts Down Drugs.
|
Sarah Jane Stanley and James Carter perform
at Prevention Concert '05. To see the 2006 New Jersey
Shouts Down Drugs finalists perform on May 18 at Prevention
Concert '06 please
call (908) 737-SHOW. |
In late 2005, high school students throughout the state
were invited to submit original songs delivering an anti-drug
message within the lyrics. According to the Partnership
for a Drug-Free America Partnership Attitude Tracking Study
(PATS) Survey, young people said they were as likely to
learn about drugs and alcohol from their peers as they were
from their parents, television and the internet.
According to Partnership Chairman Joseph P. Miele, “Our
research has consistently shown that young people highly
influence each other’s attitudes towards drugs and
alcohol. What will set this program apart from other programs
is instead of delivering an anti-drug message to high school
students, we are allowing the students to deliver the message
to one another.”
For complimentary tickets to the Comcast-sponsored Prevention
Concert ’06, please call (908) 737-SHOW
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| The
National Institute of Drug Abuse has teamed up
with Scholastic, a leading provider of educational materials
for children and teachers, to bring science-based information
about drug abuse to millions of U.S. school children. Information
and activities created to educate students on the reprecussions
of drug use can be downloaded
free of charge. For grades 6-10. |
 |
__________________________________________
THE ALCOHOL SCREENING TEST:
HOW MUCH IS TOO MUCH?
| |
|
Is
drinking alcohol harming the health of a loved one? Could
you be drinking too much? Most adults who drink alcoholic
beverages (beer, wine, or liquor) consume safe and healthy
amounts. For others, unsafe drinking patterns increase their
risk for injury, illness or future alcohol problems. For 1
in 13 American adults, alcohol abuse or alcohol dependence
causes substantial harm to their health and disruption in
their lives.
Take the
test |
______________________________________________
SILENT
TREATMENT PROVIDES PROGRESSIVE TOOLS TO EXPAND MEDIA OUTREACH
Silent Treatment: Addiction in America is a national, multi-media
public education initiative that places a media spotlight on addiction
prevention, treatment and recovery issues to promote consumer
awareness and spark change across the country. The centerpiece
is a five-part newspaper series distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune
News Service free to newspapers across the United States,
enhanced
by a project Web
site and digital outreach. The series will be available
August 2, just in time to kick off September's National Recovery
Month events. Silent Treatment provides an opportunity for advocacy
and research groups focused on addiction issues to expand current
outreach efforts. Groups can partner with print and broadcast
media to encourage local newspapers to run the series, develop
local stories and organize progressive ways to mobilize their
communities. Download
newsletters. Read Carrick Forbes life in recovery
from heroin addiction in her Living
It blog post.
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UPCOMING
EVENTS
Friends
of Addiction Recovery
New Jersey
|
All
members of recovery community -- individuals in recovery, family members,
friends, allies and other supporters are welcome.
TO REGISTER FOR EVENTS CALL:
1-888-872-3979
MAPPING
FOAR-NJ's FUTURE AND
GIVING BACK TO THE RECOVERING COMMUNITY
Friends
of Addiction Recovery-New Jersey (FOAR-NJ)
has launched recovery
community organizations, a formal
plan of advocacy, engagement and action in every county in the state.
Friends is now looking to identify individuals from the recovery community
who want to learn how to share their recovery story and advocate for
addiction recovery. Learn how people in recovery can use their special
experience to benefit the entire community! Anyone interested in participating
in their county e-mail Candice
Singer or call 888/872-3979 ext 103.
______________________________________________________________
Sat., May 20, 9:30am-2pm, PLEASE
REGISTER
Friends of Addiction Recovery Annual General
Meeting
First Presbyterian Church of Hightstown, Hightstown, NJ.
For members and individuals interested in FOAR-NJ or those wishing to
join. Details to follow.
Wed.,
May 24,7pm -PLEASE REGISTER
Relationship Circle
Allentown, NJ. Participants
will use/learn relationship skills and dynamics in this experiential
workshop to help with new relationships or sustaining present relationships.
For
more information on
Upcoming
Recovery
Support Learning Circles
and more
contact Jeanette
Grimes at 609-689-0121 ext. 109 or 888-872-3979.
______________________________________________________________
THREAT BEHIND THE PARTY GIRL IMAGE
La Times
Young women are drinking harder
alcohol -- and more of it -- at an earlier age. Now studies show it
takes a greater physical toll on them than on men. They're much more
likely than boys or young men to experience physical and sexual assault
while intoxicated. And studies show that alcohol takes a much greater
physical toll on women than on men — in a much shorter time. A
rising rate of heavy drinking among today's teen girls may signal a
future women's health crisis.
|
In
1991, 14% of the girls who binged said they drank hard liquor,
said Jernigan, citing unpublished data from the most recent Monitoring
the Future survey, a national poll conducted annually by the University
of Michigan. But that figure had risen to 18.2% in 2004. The survey
also showed eighth-grade girls with a higher binge drinking rate
than eighth-grade boys: 11.8% versus 10.8%.
Read
Story
|
|
A
Journal of Addiction Research
and Public Policy |
|
HOT
ISSUES:
IN PERSPECTIVES
_____________________
Corzine proposes first
alcohol tax hike since 1992
Advocates of raising the state’s alcohol
tax have gone more than a dozen years having their entreaties fall
on deaf ears, so Gov. Jon Corzine’s budget proposal for a
modest increase in the levies on beer, wine and liquor was viewed
as a huge victory, but not the final one. The governor’s plan
for the first increase in the alcohol tax since 1992 is absent an
earmark for expanding treatment, which some supporters believe overlooks
the natural place to channel the tax’s revenues. Among those
to see progress but not an endgame in the proposal are the members
of Parent to Parent, whose Just a Nickel a Gallon campaign presses
for dedicating $10 million of the revenue generated from a five-cent
per gallon alcohol tax hike to fund more treatment.
The
moms of Parent to Parent with Gov. Jon Corzine at Burlington
County Community College on April 5. The governor indicated
he would consider dedicating alcohol tax revenues to the Alcohol
Education Rehabilitation Enforcement Fund. |
In
strictly monetary terms, the governor’s alcohol tax proposal
exceeds what the Just
a Nickel a Gallon campaign urges. Corzine’s budget would
increase beer by five cents a gallon, while spirits and wine would
be taxed a dime more per gallon. The anticipated revenues from the
proposal would be approximately $12 million, and the total alcohol
revenues expected in the coming 12 months would exceed last year’s
by $15 million.
Read
full story
_________________
County
meetings open youth drinking dialogue
Time will tell if March 28, 2006, proves to
be a watershed on the issue of youth alcohol use. On that date,
1,200 meetings took place nationwide, 20 of them in New Jersey,
to open a dialogue among parents, teachers and school administrators,
community and church leaders, and members of law enforcement to
confront the issue in earnest.
Funded by small grants from the federal Substance Abuse and Mental
Health Services Administration, meetings across the country shared
the theme “Start Talking Before They Start Drinking.”
Read
Story
State
panel a bellwether of sentencing shift
A report released March 23 by the Justice Policy Institute, “Disparity
by Design: How Drug-Free Zone Laws Impact Racial Disparity,”
found that few arrests in the zones involve narcotics sales to students
and that minorities were on the receiving end of nearly all the
harsh penalties meted out for crimes committed in the zones. These
findings were anticipated by a report released by the New Jersey
Sentencing Review Commission, whose work the JPI drew from in no
small measure. Read
Story
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NJAADAC
to hold spring Conference on Friday, May 19
The
New Jersey Association of Alcohol and Drug Abuse Counselors is presenting
their Spring Professional Conference entitled “ What it means
to Be An Addiction Professional Today.” The conference will
be held Friday, May 19, 2006, at The College of New Jersey where
you will be provided with the opportunity to receive an overview
of the Credentialing and Licensing Process as well as participate
in continuing educational workshops towards pursuit of your professional
advancement. This Conference will provide an understanding of New
Jersey’s requirements regarding credentialing/licensing in
addition to gaining updates on what is happening on a National level
in the Addiction field. Contact
Ann Marie Brennan at 973-228-3597 or visit NJADDAC's
website. |
Think
You Can't Make A Difference? Think Again.
Collectively our voices carry great influence.
Get
your voice heard by
becoming a member of
Become
a Member Today
<<think
advocacy>>
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FILM:
Clean
by Olivier Assayas is about a rock star who must give
up drugs and her past way of life to get her son back. |
Emily Wang (Maggie Cheung) is a woman who wrestles with her dream
of becoming a singer, her fitness as a mother, and daily life without
her partner Lee (James Johnston). Her past is riddled with drugs and
regrets, the result of which left Lee dead of an overdose in a desolate
motel room in Hamilton, Ontario, and landed Emily with a six-month
jail sentence. The only thing that she desires for the future is a
loving relationship with her son Jay, who is being cared for by Lee's
parents, Albrecht (Nick Nolte) and Rosemary (Martha Henry).
Actress
Maggie Cheung's performance
won her
a 2004 Best Actress Award at Cannes.
View
Trailer (NY
Times website)
Read
Review
_____________________________________
Celebrate
and Support Recovery.
Visit NCADD-NJ's online store and support the mission of NCADD-NJ
and Friends of Addiction Recovery-NJ. From
wearable items to live events and film screenings--We've got
it.
<< visit online store>> |
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