Community Development September 2012 In the Community

Highlights from the Art of Recovery Expo CBI was the top sponsor of the Art of Recovery Expo held on September 21st & 22nd at the Phoenix Convention Center. Over 5,000 people were in attendance this year and the first inaugural Bill Brown Memorial Golf Tournament was also a huge success. Our CBI team competing against 100 other golfers won the tournament so it was a great weekend. More photos are available on our website highlighting this event. New Program Announcement

CBI is getting ready to launch our new program in the East and West Valley called “Unscript”. This will be the first outpatient medical detoxification program of its kind in the Valley to offer help to individuals who want to get “unscripted” from prescription pain relievers. We are close to launching this new program concept so stay tuned for website updates and the release of new marketing materials.

In the News CBS 5 and the East Valley Tribune provided coverage of the most recent Synthetic Drugs Task Force Meeting held on October 2

nd. County Attorney Bill

Montgomery joined us this morning to discuss efforts underway to eliminate sales of bath salts, spice, kratom, and many others in our communities. Link to CBS5 evening news coverage on AZ Central: http://www.azcentral.com/community/mesa/articles/2012/10/02/20121002maricopa-county-offensive-bath-salts.html

Link to article in the East Valley Tribune: http://www.eastvalleytribune.com/local/cop_shop/article_44ed7ff8-0cec-11e2-bb9b-0019bb2963f4.html#.UG0E-9Arho4.email

The Prevention Partnership is continuing to focus on coalition work to create environmental changes and prevention youth substance abuse. Two major projects currently being led by the Mesa Prevention Alliance address the growing concerns with synthetic drugs and prevalence of underage drinking. Over 75 individuals representing the business community, faith community, law enforcement, nonprofits, and schools have attended our East Valley Synthetic Drugs Task Force since July. The task force is a collaboration convening community stakeholders from the City of Chandler, Gilbert, Scottsdale, Mesa, and Tempe each month. The goal is to provide the public with accurate information about these dangerous drugs and impact upcoming legislation that will toughen laws and tighten loopholes as mentioned above in the most recent news coverage about “Bath Salts’”.

__________________________________________________________ Prevention Program Updates September 2012

The second annual leadership luncheon was held at the Landmark Restaurant on September 18th. Over 40 community stakeholders came together to be recognized for their contributions to “Building a Better Mesa”. Our keynote speaker was Maricopa County Attorney Bill Montgomery who provided great direction on how his office will assist the Alliance in our efforts to reduce underage drinking and enforce further bans on synthetic drugs going forward. The Alliance is also taking the lead on successfully securing a Social Host Ordinance (SHO) in the City of Mesa. The Public Policy Committee is working with other community coalitions who have successfully passed these Ordinances that are focused on protecting youth from underage drinking. This committee is currently involving local leaders for input and feedback as we proceed.

Join us at the next meeting! The next Mesa Prevention Alliance meeting will be held on October 24th, 2012 at 9:00am at The Family Resource Center- 817 N. Country Club, Mesa, 85201.

Community Education September 2012 The following education and training workshop were provided during the month of September:

12 Phoenix Police officers learned latest updates on synthetic drugs and CBI services at police briefing at Cactus Precinct on Friday, September 7th

11 parents learned about underage drinking and consequences in a class hosted at Family Resource Center on Tuesday, September 11th

92 parents and teenagers learned about latest drug trends, behaviors and norms and strategies to implement family time and conversation by attending the Family Day – Dinner and Talk hosted by No Parent Left Behind in TUHSD on Tuesday, September 18

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45 social workers from Gilbert Public Schools learned about latest drug trends, including synthetics, Rx and energy drinks on Tuesday, September 25

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15 ASU grad students learned about latest drug trends and CBI services at class presentation on Thursday, September 27th at ASU Downtown