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Faith Communities: Prevention Materials September 1997

Making Prevention Work: Actions for Faith Communities
Organization: Center for Substance Abuse Prevention
Year: 1994
Format: Fact Sheet
Length: 1 Page
Topic: Substance Abuse and Prevention
Target Audience: Community Service Groups, Congregations, Faith Communities; Non-denominational
Inventory Number: MPW012
Availability: NCADI, P.O. Box 2345, Rockville, MD 20847-2345; 800-729-6686. (free)

This fact sheet for congregations and faith communities presents 15 ways to prevent substance abuse in their congregations. The pointers offered include: (1) schedule sermons on substance abuse and tie them into prevention-related community campaigns or special events, and (2) hold training workshops for parents and other groups on substance abuse prevention.

Creating Lasting Connections (CLC) is a prevention program focusing on increasing protective factors and decreasing risk factors associated with substance use within high risk youth age 12-14, their families, and their communities. CLC is an ecumenical church-based program. After church community members are recruited and trained, they form advocate teams. The teams, in turn, recruit and support high risk youth and their families.
Part One, Building Community, Family and Youth Resiliency: The Creating Lasting Connections Overview, outlines the three phases of CLC: (1) community readiness, (2) substance abuse issues, parenting skills, and communications skills, and (3) family follow-up. Part Two, Producing Measurable Outcomes in Prevention: The Creating Lasting Connections Design, takes a detailed look at each phase of the program: community, program training for parents and youth, and family followup.

This packet of materials contains a program booklet that explains the campaign; a planning strategies booklet; and tips to parents, congregations, and the community. A newsletter and technical assistance bulletin are also included.

This kit includes a variety of materials to teach participants about substance abuse and how it affects them. A 60-minute videotape features youth and adults telling their stories of risk, recovery, and hope. It reinforces the safe haven that churches provide to people who are out on the streets and in trouble. The Leader's Guide for Youth Concerned About Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse, 65 pages, contains 14 sessions for youth and 4 introductory leadership lessons. Each leadership section includes a theme, and provides background information and lesson plans. The 14 lessons help youth discover and practice ways to make a positive difference in their own lives and the lives of others. The Action Guides for Younger Youth and Older Youth contain writing exercises and activities that promote discussion skills, effective communication, expressing feelings, assertiveness, and believing in oneself. An Action Guide for Families and Adults Who Care About Youth workbook contains 10 activities for families and adults who care about today's youth and the ever growing substance abuse problem in our society. Several of the activities involve community action and self respect. The kit also includes a poster that can be used to advertise an introductory session of the program.

This booklet provides ideas and guidance for parishes on how to confront the substance abuse problem. Chapters focus on prevention, education, treatment, self-help groups, family support, advocacy, and getting started.

This manual has been developed to provide guidance to congregations who want to address substance abuse in their community. Although some of the information and resources are applicable to any faith community, the bulk of this publication is directed toward Christian congregations. Critical chapters examine pastoral care, strong lay leadership, a committed team approach, and bridge-building between the church and 12-step support groups. Other chapters cover the church and Alcoholics Anonymous, awareness and education, and prevention and parenting. A list of resources on both State and national levels is included also.

This curriculum series focuses on the following as instructional components: self-worth, responsibility, decision making, communication, Jewish identity, and being an informed consumer. Three curriculum modules are offered: Grades K-3 (66 pages, 1991); Grades 4-6 (68 pages, 1991); and Grades 7-9 (59 pages, 1989). Each module includes suggested teaching methods, Judaic references, media resources, and agency and program resources.

This manual is a companion to the Curriculum on Substance Abuse in Jewish Education (COSAJE). COSAJE was designed to prevent substance abuse by incorporating Jewish values and lifestyles with proven substance abuse prevention techniques. It contains sections on possible signs of adolescent drug misuse or abuse, where to get help, specific substances and their effects, the legal dimension, substance abuse prevention program resources and references, and selected articles addressing substance abuse within the Jewish community.

This manual outlines a range of activities that can be undertaken by rabbis, administrators, educators, board members, and social action committees of reform congregations. The first section gives a background on substance abuse. The second section gives a historical perspective on Judaism and substance abuse. The third section on social action initiatives suggests speakers, workshops, publications, posters, forums, weekend retreats, and hosting 12-step programs. It also includes three lesson plans for children in grades 1-3, 4-6, and 7-12. The appendices include Biblical and Talmudic references to alcoholism.

This manual provides parents with facts, skills, and tips to help keep their children off drugs. Beating peer pressure, signs of alcohol and drug use, and what to do if you suspect substance use are among the topics addressed. A description of similar material available from other resources, a 12-step program designed for parents, and a listing of State organizations and national hotlines are also included.

Most any teenager can relate to feeling left out. This pamphlet encourages teens not to feel compelled to fit in with a certain crowd. It suggests broadening teens range of activities and potential friends, being open to making good changes, and avoiding changes that are not true to oneself. It states, the "formula for being comfortable anywhere, anytime, with any group of people: Be comfortable with yourself."

This edition of "Voices" (Special Edition #6) examines the importance of teenagers having a relationship with God as they make their transition from childhood to adulthood. Five adults who interact with teenagers about connecting with God are interviewed. The adults live in different socioeconomic settings of Cook County, IL. The Douglases are a married middle-aged couple who live in a middle class Chicago suburb. They speak about their experiences as Quest Parents, a program sponsored by their parish which brought 15-20 students into their home every Sunday evening for the 4 years the students were in high school. A Catholic church-based youth outreach worker is interviewed. Her church is located in a poverty-stricken Harvey neighborhood. A Mexican youth worker for a parish in Cicero, which has a large Mexican immigrant population, talks about the impact of cultural differences. The final interviewee is a youth pastor from a parish in the ethnically mixed north side of Chicago.

The Livingston County Catholic Social Services Project Prevention Program recently completed a 3-year substance abuse prevention project, which involved a large number of church communities. This manual describes the task and process of the project and details recruitment, program format, and summary of programs implemented as a result of this project. This includes grant application and grant award, literature review, organization of the process, participant recruitment, program format, and program evaluation.