February 29, 2012
Vol 14
July 13, 2011
No 9
Vol 13 No 28
Wentzville Police Department Kicks Off New “Test My Teen” Drug Prevention Program
Drug Prevention
IN this Issue
Concerned, involved parents are the strongest deterrent kids have for staying off drugs, but peer pressure to experiment with drugs is one of the biggest stumbling blocks kids face. To help both parents and teens win the battle against drug involvement, Wentzville’s police department is kicking off a new Test My Teen drug-prevention program that is designed to keep parents in touch with what is really going on with their teens and give teens a way to stop peer pressure dead in its tracks when friends urge them to experiment with drugs and alcohol. The program allows parents to download a voucher for one free, home drugtest kit through a link on Wentzville Police Department’s section of the city’s website, at www.wentzvillemo.org. Parents only pay for shipping of the kit. Electronic vouchers require no interaction with police, thereby providing parents total anonymity and the ability for families to privately address the issue. In addition, the kits are shipped using non-descript packaging to also preserve the family’s privacy. Parents without internet access may pick up a printed voucher at Wentzville’s police department, located at 1019 Schroeder Creek Blvd. in Wentzville. Wentzville Police Chief Lisa Harrison said she was introduced to the new program through a letter from the Missouri Police Chiefs Charitable Foundation (MPCCF), and believes the program helps create a very positive, effective partnership in fighting drug use among teens. “For years, police have been the first to know and parents the last to know when local kids used drugs,” Harri-
son said. “With this program, we can work with parents and turn this thing around.” Harrison explained the program provides families an effective tool in the fight against drug experimentation and use. “When teens’ so-called friends pressure them to experiment with drugs or alcohol, they can tell their friends, ‘No thanks. My parents test me.’ That takes the pressure off teens to defend their choice for not using,” Harrison said. “It also says to peers ‘If I use I’ll get caught for certain and then I’ll have to explain where I got the drugs.’” Harrison also said the program also provides a way for teens that have previously been caught using drugs to rebuild trust with their parents. “Parents can know for sure if their teen is telling the truth when they say, ‘No, I am no longer using,” she said. Parents who would like to know more about the Test My Teen program may go to the program’s website at www. testmyteen.com. There they will find
Around Town . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-4 Lincoln County Life . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Business . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
the answers to many of their questions, information on what to look for, conversation starters they can use to talk with their teen about drugs, and even
references to counselors who can help them. Free kit vouchers, however, must be downloaded or picked up at a participating law enforcement agencies.
MOVIE PEEK
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“Wanderlust” - Photo courtesy of Universal Pictures
Joe Morice / Sports . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 What’s Happening . . . . . . . . . . . 12-13 Classifieds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .14-15
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