GOVERNOR LAUNCHES EFFORT TO EDUCATE ADULTS ABOUT TEEN DRINKING

With BC-CNS-Drinking-Box 

Photos: 1 | 2 (thumbnails, captions below)

By ERIC GRAF
Cronkite News Service

PHOENIX (Monday, Oct. 29) _ As Gov. Janet Napolitano launched a campaign to curb underage drinking, a community leader who lost a child in an alcohol-related traffic accident said parents must stop sending mixed messages on drinking.

“We are providing tacit approval to our kids with our actions,” said Rodolfo Calvillo, a prevention specialist with the Pinal Hispanic Council.

Calvillo, who lives in Eloy, said in an interview at Monday’s ceremony that he is a former alcoholic who failed to provide a good example for his own teenage child, who died two decades ago.

“How many times do you have parents saying to not do something but then do it themselves?” Calvillo said. “Kids will do what we do.”

Napolitano announced the new campaign called “Draw the Line,” which educates adults about the dangers of underage drinking.

“It is not a rite of passage and it is not safe for children,” Napolitano said. “It is against the law.”

Studies show that 40 percent of kids who start drinking before age 15 will become alcoholics and that half of Arizonans think underage drinking is OK under adult supervision, Napolitano said.

“This is a responsibility we all share,” she said.

“Draw the Line” aims to change the perceptions of Arizona parents and adults about the dangers of underage alcohol consumption.

Monday’s announcement featured a display highlighting a 2006 survey of Arizona eighth-graders that found one in four had consumed alcohol within the past 30 days.

The campaign is funded by the Arizona Parents Commission on Drug Education and Prevention, which was created in 1996. It will coordinate the efforts of more than two dozen agencies, including the Department of Education and the Department of Public Safety.

“Draw the Line” has launched a Web site featuring stories from parents such as Calvillo who have dealt with underage drinking. There are also tips for parents and studies that discuss the legal and physical consequences of kids drinking.

Also at the event was Williams High School senior Shaunni Tanori, who was friends with some of those who died in an alcohol-related car accident in that community in September. Five people died, and authorities said everyone in the car had been drinking.

Tanori said she had given up drinking and many classmates who were shocked by the deaths had done the same.

“When you drink, anything could happen at any time, just like this,” she said. “It’s horrible to see this happen to people you grew up with.”

Getting teens to avoid drinking is a tough battle, but it is one worth fighting, Tanori said.

“It won’t be easy, but I stand as proof that it is possible,” she told the crowd.

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Web Link:

_ Draw the Line: www.drawyourline.com

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PHOTOS: Click thumbnails to see full-resolution images and download

CAPTION FOR BC-CNS-UNDERAGE DRINKING: Shaunni Tanori, a senior at Williams High School , stands Monday, Oct. 29, 2007, next to a display highlighting a survey that found one in four eighth-graders had consumed alcohol in the past 30 days. Tanori was friends with five young people who died recently in a car crash in Williams. (Cronkite News Service Photo/Eric Graf)

CAPTION FOR BC-CNS-UNDERAGE DRINKING: Andres Cano, a junior at City High School in Tucson, speaks Monday, Oct. 29, 2007, at a news conference announcing a statewide effort to curb underage drinking. Cano is the southern Arizona team leader for the Governor’s Youth Council. (Cronkite News Service Photo/Eric Graf)