Community Development December 2012

“When Prescription Pills Become the Problem”- Dr. Scarpati recently wrote an article that will be featured in the January 2013 issue of the Together AZ newspaper. The article focuses on the growing prescription pill abuse epidemic and how CBI’s Unscript Program can assist individuals who become addicted unintentionally to narcotic pain relievers while undergoing treatment for pain. This feature will also be available on our website to share. Our team is coordinating a folllow up TV segment that will air on Channel 5 in January.

In The News CBS 5 News covered a story on the release of the Arizona Youth Survey for 2012. Results report that 1 in 10 AZ teens are using synthetic drugs. Stephanie Siete participated in an interview that aired on December 18th. Ms. Siete also participated in live morning news coverage regarding the release of the most recent Monitoring the Future (MTF) studies on teen drug use. This segment aired on Thursday, December 20th.

Connect with CBI’s Social Media Network! In the social media world, CBI continues to grow our fan base with more than 4,000 viewers each month! Check out these outlets to see public comments, recommendations and feedback right on our Facebook timeline. We also link videos, news coverage, community resources, and real time agency updates. We are easy to find if you search Community Bridges AZ.

Coming in February Stay tuned for the launch of CenterforHopeAZ.org. The Center for Hope will have its own dedicated website launching in February, 2013 to focus on expanding our reach and message to the private sector. We will be piloting a Corporate Sponsor program in the coming months to raise awareness about our impact.

Capital Campaign Update We would like to thank all CBI Board Members who made financial contributions to the nursery campaign. We are pleased to share that we have met our goal of 100% Board Giving and raised $2,500.

We currently have $59,227.00 committed to the project along with a $225,000 proposal pending with the City of Mesa CDBG. We will be presenting to the Housing and Community Development Advisory Board on January 9, 2013 to make our final pitch. We are also planning our first Prospect Committee meeting on February 12th at the Center for Hope. Board Members are encouraged to participate. For more details, please contact Tauna Miner.

__________________________________________________________ Prevention Program Updates December 2012 East Valley Synthetic Drugs Task Force (EVSDTF) Drug Free Communities Grant The task force consists of school district officials, police officers, fire departments, behavioral healthcare providers, probation officers, drug testing service agencies, legislators and others from the East Valley communities of Mesa, Tempe, Chandler and Gilbert. The EVSDTF members have made it a priority to work collaboratively to eliminate synthetic drugs; preventing their sales, use and health hazards.

Our Goal: Educate and Eliminate. Educate the public about these new and unknown dangerous chemicals and eliminate them by changing

legislation to deem them illegal drugs; thus prohibiting their sales and availability.

o 105 security officers from Mesa Public Schools learned about synthetic drugs, the risks and effects at trainings provided by Stephanie Siete on December 3rd, 4th, and 5th

o 44 behavioral health providers at the Magellan Crisis Meeting held at Bill Wilson Hall learned about bath salts and spice during a brief 20 minute presentation on Thursday, December 6th

o 40 Mesa Police Department (officers and employees) learned about synthetic drugs, the risks and effects at a training on Tuesday, December 11th

o 80 Phoenix Fire Department employees learned about CBI resources, addictions and synthetic drugs during a class as part of their “Fire Strong” program on Tuesday, December 11th and December 14th.

The next EVSDTF meeting will be at 10am on Tuesday, January 15th at ASU Skysong in room 349. To learn more, please feel free to contact Stephanie Siete at ssiete@cbridge.com.

Join us at the next meeting! The next Mesa Prevention Alliance meeting will be held on January 23rd at 9:00am at The Family Resource Center- 817 N. Country Club, Mesa, 85201. www.MesaPreventionAlliance.org