P.E.A.C.E. Newsletter Issue 1, July 2013

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P.E.A.C.E. Foundation Newsletter July 2013

Our Mission:

To educate the public about the dangers of

prescription drugs and empower them with the

knowledge to recognize and stop abuse before it

Issue 1, Jul 2013

What is P.E.A.C.E.??The P.E.A.C.E. Foundation was founded ion July

of 2011 after the unintentional prescription drug

overdose death of a Sixteen-Year-old Lenoir CountyResident Kaitlyn Nicole Rouse. After Kaitlyns death

her mother Shannon Rouse Ruiz decided to take her

daughters tragedy and help other parents and teens that

may feel alone and are struggling with addiction issues.

For more information about The P.E.A.C.E. Foundation

please visit us on our Website:

@Www.peacefoundationnc.org

And like us Facebook!

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Every Day is Drug Independence Day!

Visit our Website to take the Pledge!

Upcoming Events

August 21st

9am

Lenoir County

Substance Abuse

Task Force

Monthly Meeting

September

1st-31st

Recovery Month

September

22nd 28th

National

Medicine Abuse

Project

September 27th P.E.A.C.E.

Foundation

Annual Plate Sale

October 26th Operation

Medicine DropLenoir Cointy


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P.E.A.C.E. Foundation Newsletter Issue 1, July 201

More Stupid Drunk Tricks

Sadly, I am not kidding,

people really are doing

these things to get drunk.

Not surprisingly, most

articles discussing these

practices attribute them to

teenagers and college

students. Underage drink-

ing continues to be a

significant problem,

causing the death of

approximately 4,700 kids

each year (SAMHSA)

with 68% of the deaths not

associated with traffic

accidents. Although it is

illegal in this country for

persons under 21 years of

age to consume alcohol,

kids continue to find

inventive ways to do so.

Smoking alcohol 1 involves

using dry ice or a special

device to vaporize alcohol,

allowing the user to inhale

the fumes and rapidly get

the effects of the alcohol.

It can cause serious

damage to sensitive lung

tissue due to the low

temperatures and the

alcohol is not tempered by

passing through the

digestive system.

I have previously

mentioned drinking hand

sanitizer 2, available just

about anywhere, as a way

to quickly get an alcohol

buzz. We often send our

kids to school with hand

sanitizer and its improper

use is difficult to detect.

Butt chugging 3 involves

inserting alcohol directly

into the rectum, either by

soaking a tampon in it or

using a bag and tube. The

alcohol is rapidly absorbed

into the system and

bypasses the bodys

normal filtration systems.

Kids are

inventive. Look for the

signs of alcohol abuse and

work with your kids before

they can become one of

the 4,700.

Its the dangerous new way teens are getting drunk and its

going viral. Doctors even say it could be deadly.


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\In 2011, Shannon losther 16-year-old daughterKaitlyn to a prescriptiondrug overdose. WhenKaitlyn passed away,

Shannon had herdaughters organsdonated, and that selflessact has saved six otherlives. Kaitlyns heart wentto New York residentBrianna Barker, then 13,who Shannon met for thefirst time just yesterday,along with her motherVeronica.

After the loss of herdaughter, Shannonfounded a local NorthCarolina foundation shenamed PEACE(Prescription EducationAbuse CounselingEmpowerment), which iscommitted to educatingthe public about thedangers of prescriptiondrugs and empoweringthem with the knowledgeto recognize and stopabuse before it starts.We are honored thatShannon shared her storywith us. She, along withother parent members of

our NPN, offers hervaluable insight andguidance to help othercaregivers who are facingteen drug and alcohol

abuse issues. This workhelps further our missionto solve the problem ofteen substance abuse.

Are you a parent who hasa personal experiencewith teen substanceabuse? Are you interestedin volunteering your time,wisdom and expertise to

help other familiestouched by teen drug andalcohol abuse? If so,please contact ShannonRuiz, Executive Directorof the P.E.A.C.E.Foundation at([email protected]). Let us know whyyoud like to help, andlearn how you can joinour Parent Network.Thank you!

The History

BehindP.E.A.C.E.!


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We are suffering from some very serious issues especially as it concerns drug abuse.

Internationally, 208 million people use illegal drugs. There are 14 million drug users in

the United States and there are 4 million people that are chronic abusers. Did youknow that drug traffickers have an annual profit of 600 billion dollars. Every 12

seconds a school aged person will use illegal drugs for the first time and their dealers

will go on their school grounds and provide it to them. Today, the leading cause of

accidental death, is from the overdose of a prescription medication. Every 15 minutes

someone dies from an overdose of prescription medications. No longer are my officers

totally concerned with crack cocaine, marijuana, or meth but prescription drugs. Our

children think that because medications come from a doctor and that because its in the

medicine cabinet, that it must be safe. But why do kids even consider taking drugs.They do it because they want to fit in, to escape or relax, to relieve boredom, to seem

grown up, to rebel, or to experiment. At some point in their young lives someone

probably told them that:

It will make you cool, you will not get hooked from

just one hit, one hit will never hurt, weed will not lead

to harder drugs, if you get drunk you will be one of the

guys, if you do it you can party all night, prescription

pills are totally safe, meth will get you through the

exam, sniffing glue is no big deal, heroin is the best

high ever, and acid will make you forget your

problems.

If you speak to a kid who had abused drugs they would

probably tell you:

They did it because I wanted to fit in, they did it

because they couldnt deal with life, they did it because they wanted to experiment,

they did it because they are stubborn and rebellious. They will also probably tell

you that whoever got them started on drugs lied to them about the consequences.

A drug dealer is a salesman and will lie and deceive to create a new customer. But kid

dont always get their drugs from street dealers, they sometimes get their drugs,

especially prescription pain killers from their friends and relatives. 70% of prescription

drug abusers indicate that they got their drugs from friends and family members.

What the Sheriff has to say about Substance Abuse in LC.


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There is no difference in terminology whether a person provides one Percocet to a

person or provides a gram of cocaine, they are considered drug dealers. What are the

most commonly abuse prescription drugs out there: Seconal, Nembutal, Ativan,

Valium, Xanax, Codeine, Fentanyl, morphine, opium products such as Oxcotin,

Percodan, and Percocet, methamphetamines, cocaine, and steroids.

We know that drug abuse is relational to robberies, burglaries, and thefts. People who

abuse drugs must support their habits by committing these types of crimes. If you

have a high crime rate, you probably have a serious drug abuse problem. So, the

answer is, if you want to reduce robberies, burglaries, and thefts, you have to reduce

drug abuse. Drug abuse is not just a law enforcement problem, it is a community

cancer. We have all heard that it takes a village to raise a child; well it also takes a

village to stop drug abuse. If you think that this issue can be solved by law

enforcement, then you do not realize the immense complexity and gravity of the issue.

Law enforcement cannot make a measurable impact on drug abuse from the position of

enforcement because we have limited resources. So, the community must be willing to

get involved. They must become intolerant to drug dealing and report dealers to law

enforcement. At the same time we must educate our kids and tell them about the

horrors of drug abuse. A teen that is completely informed about drug abuse from a

drug abuser their own age is probably one the best tools in reducing drug abuse in that

they may never experiment with drugs after hearing about the consequences. Its

important that kids hear stories from mothers and fathers who have lost children todrug abuse. A kid may quickly realize that doing drugs does not make you cool, or fit

in with friends, or escape reality. Kids also need to hear it coming from the pulpit.

Understand this, If there are no users, they are no abusers, and crime is reduced, which

also means that drug profits dry up and the dealers leave. The best remedy is to stop a

kid by educating them before they ever get tempted to try drugs. If they make their

mind up that they want no part of drugs then they are likely to never try them. As a

matter of fact, studies show that if a person reaches the age of 21 and has not useddrugs, they likely never will.

Substance Abuse in Lenoir County:

Lenoir County is no different than any other county in North Carolina. We have ppl

addicted to marijuana, cocaine, crack, crystal meth, ecstasy, heroin and LSD.

Occasionally we hear about those using mushrooms and huffing gas from whip cream

cans and compressed air cans, not to mention the rampant use of prescription

medications by persons of all ages. Is it getting any better, no.


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We tend to go through cycles of various drugs where we hear about more production

or usage. Marijuana is a very common drug and we see it all the time, but over the

years we have seen increases in meth production, sales and usage. My officers

continue to find and dismantle meth labs in our county. The drug is cheap, provides a

high that is of a long duration, is intense and is very addictive. We are now beginningto see a resurgence of heroin.

What do I think about the problem:

Drug abuse if not seriously addressed by the entire community will only get worse. If

drug abuse gets worse, the incidence of crime will get worse. We will have new drugs

that will emerge and we will have more drug abusers.

What do I plan to do about it:

The better question is, what does the community plan to do about it. My people will

continue to curb the flow of narcotics but the community has got to reach the kids

before they make the choice to use drugs. I would like to see drug education put back

into the schools. Remember, if we can reach children before they go down this path we

will create a larger pool of non-users who will dry up profits from drug sales. Can a

large group of motivated teens create a movement in their schools to stop drug abuse?

Absolutely. Will most teens listen to other teens before they listen to adults? Yes.

As I have stated before we must develop solutions to address children and young

adults before they go down this path. I think education about the consequences of

drug abuse is the key. Our kids need to know the facts and see the consequences.

Nationally, we need to create a standardized database that contains all prescriptions

and do away with paper prescriptions. If law enforcement had access to the data we

could see prescription medication usage and who is obtaining them, and we could

discover those that are shopping for doctors in attempts to obtain prescriptions

painkillers. We may also discover those in the medical field who are facilitating drugabuse.

We will continue to have drives such as medicine drop to recover old medications and

get them out of the homes so that children dont accidentally or intentionally ingest

them.


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Ways to get involved:

My best suggestion is to get involved in a local community programs such as

community watch group, the safe kids coalition, the PEACE foundation. You cannot

solve your crime problems and drug abuse by sitting at home and watching cops on tv

You have to get involved and take a stand. Can we as a community offer people

activities that are alternatives to drug use? We must be willing to report suspicious

activity, write down license plates, document what you see, remember its a

community problem its not just a law enforcement problem.


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The bedroom is a traveling room

designed to instruct parents where too search

for drugs in their home and what drugs looks

like. Many times, children can conceal the

use of drugs/paraphernalia in their rooms.

We teach how to conduct a proper safety

sweep, signs of drug abuse, and provide free

resources that are available in our local

community. This is perfect for church

groups, PTAs, or anyone concerned about

the well being of their child.

To Schedule the Bedroom Project for your Church or Civic Organization

please contact us @:

[email protected]

Documents

P.E.A.C.E. Newsletter Issue 1, July 2013