Booze, graduation don’t mix

By BILL SHEA, Messenger staff writer
High school graduation marks the end of changing classes and cramming books into a hall locker.

For young people, starting a grown-up, post-high school life may be the ultimate reason to celebrate.

Add some alcohol to that celebration, however, and trouble generally follows, according to substance abuse experts and law enforcement officers.

Folks over 21 who provide alcohol for youth graduation parties risk being booked on a misdemeanor charge.

Webster County Sheriff Brian Mickelson said that in years past parents may have provided alcohol at graduation parties in the belief that the kids were going to drink anyway. That attitude has apparently changed, he said.

‘‘Most parents are less likely to purchase alcohol,’’ he said.

Through a new program called Safe Home, parents can publicly declare their intent to do everything they can to prevent underage drinking at their residence. Liddy Hora, director of the Webster County Drug Free Alliance, said Safe Home parents commit to being present during parties. They also pledge to do the best they can to stop alcohol and drug use.

Since the program began a year ago, about 200 Webster County families have signed up for Safe Home.

Hora said the number of parents who serve alcohol to teens is very small. A bigger problem, she said, is parents ‘‘putting their heads in the sand’’ and ignoring the possibility that their children could be drinking.

‘‘We have to keep hitting this issue head-on,’’ she said. ‘‘We can’t just throw our hands up and say ’kids will be kids.’’’

Parents, she said, have to tell their children that underage drinking is wrong. And they have to do it even when the kids act bored and annoyed when the subject comes up, she added.

Even though teens may roll their eyes and groan when a parent says something, there’s evidence that they are listening, Hora said. She said that in several surveys, American teens have listed their parents as the greatest influence in their lives.

“Our kids are listening,” she said. “They don’t need us as friends. They have plenty of friends. They need us to be parents.”

Parents also have to set an example with their own behavior.

“Actions speak louder than words,” she said.



Contact Bill Shea at (515) 573-2141 or bshea@messengernews.net