|
Letters to the Editor
An open letter to residents:
Underage drinking is epidemic in our country today and is a problem that exists throughout our communities in Erie County. Underage drinking is a community problem, but one that also has a community solution. As Sheriff of Erie County, I have a great concern with the issue of underage drinking among our local youth and I have been working with my staff to develop an environmental prevention strategy aimed at addressing this problem. This type of approach, sometimes called "environmental change," focuses on media, enforcement, and policy changes designed to create an environment to support healthy, safe behaviors among youth.
I recognized the need to look closely at our patrol districts and the issues related to DWIs, underage drinking, and other alcohol-related consequences. In order to identify areas of elevated risk and to begin to address this problem, my staff has worked closely with the Center for Health and Social Research at Buffalo State College to conduct a preliminary needs assessment using neighborhood and community risk data.
I have asked the New York State Office of Alcohol and Substance Abuse Services and Erie County Department of Mental Health to allocate funding for a pilot program in southern Erie County to look at underage drinking and the environmental factors that contribute to it. In order to effectively implement a comprehensive environmental prevention strategy, I need your help to better understand the dynamics of your community and their influences on underage drinking behavior. I have directed my staff to contact parents, students, community leaders, and concerned citizens in order to elicit this information, which we are unable to acquire anywhere else.
I am asking you to contact a member of my staff to arrange for an informal meeting with you at a convenient time and location to conduct a short, open-ended and confidential interview on the nature of underage drinking in your community. Also, you will be asked if you would be interested in continuing to help us to address any underage drinking issues in your community by participating as an underage drinking coalition team member. We will contact you in the near future in order to follow up on this critical problem.
If you have any questions or concerns, or to schedule an interview appointment, please contact Michael Licata, Erie County Sheriff's Office Coordinator of Substance Abuse at (716) 858-6305 or licatam@erie.gov.
Your involvement is important for the success of this project to reduce the high level of underage drinking in Erie County. We will contact you in the near future to follow up. Additional information on underage drinking is available at:www.oasas.state.ny.us/ud/ OASAS_TOOLKIT_CE/ index.htm.
Sincerely, Timothy Howard Sheriff of Erie County
| 
