Drug coalition gets $369,000
By Eloise Aguiar
Advertiser Windward O'ahu Writer
KANE'OHE — A coalition of organizations dedicated to reducing substance abuse among school-age children from Kane'ohe to Kahalu'u has received a $369,000 grant that will help an overlapping communitywide effort to stem drug problems.
• Some 24.2 percent of Windward eighth-graders participating in a recent state Department of Health study admitted to alcohol use in the past 30 days. Twelve percent of eighth-graders participating in the study said they had used marijuana in the previous 30 days. • The numbers soared for Windward high school seniors, with about 44.7 percent of those participating in the study admitting to alcohol use in the previous 30 days and 26.6 percent saying they had used marijuana. Source: 2002 Hawai'i Student Alcohol, Tobacco and Other Drug Use Study
The coalition, Community Works in 96744 — the ZIP Code for homes and businesses from Kahalu'u to Kane'ohe — has identified substance-abuse prevention for students as a priority in creating a healthy community.
Windward teen survey
The 2002 Hawai'i Student Alcohol, Tobacco and Other Drug Use Study said risk factors in the Windward school district were the second-highest in the state, next to the Hawai'i district. The study also found that treatment needs for the Windward school district exceeded other O'ahu school districts by 5 percentage points or 6 percentage points.
Community Works in 96744 was one of several organizations that supported recent town meetings in Kahalu'u seeking ways to deal with drug abuse. It backed the subsequent sign-waving campaign to let users and dealers know the community no longer will tolerate drugs in the neighborhoods.
The group has received $120,000 as the first installment of a three-year state grant from the Department of Health's Alcohol and Drug Abuse Division. The money will be used to start programs that will give students alternatives to help them make better choices.
The coalition is months away from offering programs, but it has high hopes.
"We're looking at values change," said Bob Nakata, president of KEY Project, a member of the coalition.
"The idea is when you come into 96744 (the community) you know you're in a drug-free zone."
The other members of the coalition are the Marimed Foundation, Hawai'i Intergenerational Network, Ho-nolulu Community Action Program, Parents And Children Together-Kaneohe Community Family Center, Queen Lili'uokalani Children's Center, Polynesian Voyaging Society, District 4 of the Honolulu Police Department, Castle Wellness Center, city Department of Parks and Recreation and local sports leagues.
The coalition has considered a range of proposals in the community, from as simple as getting parents to stop drinking at Little League games to creating a leadership program to steer kids away from substance abuse.
The original grant request outlined a three-year Leader-ship and Resiliency Program that would accept 50 eighth-grade students per year as the coalition's primary drug-fighting tool. The program would offer such things as leadership training, substance-abuse prevention education, ropes course, service project involvement and voyaging between the islands, said Matt Claybaugh, president and CEO of Marimed Foundation, a youth residential treatment agency.
However, the coalition isn't ready to accept children into any program yet.
Coalition members must undergo training June 10 and revise the program originally proposed in the grant based on a community assessment to be conducted this summer.
This process should take about six months, said Cynthia Okazaki, coalition facilitator and site coordinator at Kaneohe Community Family Center. The assessment will identify problems and determine the best way to address them, Okazaki said.
"We really want this to be a healthy and safe community for all families," Okazaki said, adding that the coalition tried to build collaboration to work together and not duplicate services.
"We shared resources, shared information and really tried to help one another."
Reach Eloise Aguiar at eaguiar@honoluluadvertiser.com or 234-5266.
