p.e.a.c.e. newsletter issue 1, july 2013
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7/27/2019 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!
pg. 3
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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P.E.A.C.E. Foundation Newsletter Issue 1, July 201
\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(shannonrouseruiz@gmail.com). 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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P.E.A.C.E. Foundation Newsletter Issue 1, July 201
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 @:
Director@peacefoundation.org
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