Drug Free Lee to offer spring break presentations
With schools around Lee County going on Spring Break next week, Drug Free Lee will host a series of online presentations to help parents relay important messages to their children.
Drug Free Lee’s programming coincides with National Drug and Alcohol Facts Week, where on March 17-20, daily Zoom presentations start at 2 p.m. each day and highlight different areas of focus.
“With Spring Break and summer coming up, kids are going to have more time on their hands,” said Drug Free Lee Executive Director Deborah Comella. “It’s just a great time for parents to talk to them. This way, we can give the parents a little bit of a head start on what to watch for.”
Coemlla said incidents of both binge drinking and first-time drinking often happen during vacations.
“Spring Break is notorious, and I’m not singling out Lee County, but we are definitely a party spot,” Comella said. “We share that with a number of other places in Florida. We need to be especially vigilant about where our kids are, what kind of parties they’re going to, what kind of parties we’re giving, and how we’re helping our kids make good decisions.”
Comella said the power and influence of social media and the ability to spread information at the push of a button, can play a role in get-togethers where things may not always be what they seem, or can unwontedly get out of hand.
“All it takes is for one kid to put it out over social media, and all of a sudden you have (too many) kids at your house,” Comella said. “Parents just need to be aware of that. Sometimes we’re just not used to the speed of how things are communicated.”
Parents having a talk with their child, letting them know they’re only one phone call away, can be a great conversation to have.
“Whatever the magic word is in your house (to let them know) that you’ll come right away,” Comella said. “Around Spring Break, that becomes really important. Things can escalate, things can happen. It’s really important to have those kinds of codes set up with your parents. It’s helpful for us to give them the words to do that.”
Conversations far before a vacation, or time like school vacation, is paramount.
“You need to have that conversation in a very casual setting,” Comella said. “You don’t want them to be defensive. Then, you’re in a position where you can just remind them. You don’t want to accuse your kid. We just want our kids to know that we love them and to have that talk well before the party or the break, so they know what to do and say.”
Presentations during National Drug and Alcohol Facts Week include:
• March 17: Current Trends in Drugs of Abuse and Paraphernalia – Captain Allan Kolak, Cape Coral Police Department
• March 18: Fentanyl – A Continuing Threat – Heidi Webb, Kimmie’s Recovery Zone
• March 19: Marijuana – The Tip of the Iceberg – Ellen Snelling, Prevention Activist and Board Member of the Hillsborough Anti-Drug Alliance
• March 20: What’s Going On Under the Bleachers – Samuel Laguerre, Lutheran Services Florida Program Director of the Year
“They’re the experts,” Comella said.
All of the free-to-attend presentations will be posted to Drug Free Lee’s YouTube channel to watch after.
Drug Free Lee’s Town Hall “Drug House Odyssey – Straight Talk About Underage Drinking” was selected as a National Best Practice by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration, and is also accessible on YouTube.
Drug Free Lee puts on prevention presentations at various summer camps throughout Lee County, including at the Boys & Girls Club and some parks and recreation programs locally.
“We have a series of six prevention classes we can offer,” Comella said.
The overarching message to parents during the upcoming break and summer?
“It’s always going to be to listen,” Comella said. “We know we have to talk to our kids, but what’s important is that we listen. Our kids are going to talk back, and we just have to be able to find out what they’re thinking. Prevention looks different to each kid and each family, and our job as parents is to find out what that looks like with our kids.”
For more information on Drug Free Lee, and information on how to attend the Zoom presentations, visit www.DrugFreeLee.org.
To reach CJ HADDAD / cjhaddad@breezenewspapers.com, please email