Help youth ‘close the gate on drugs’

During The American Legion’s eighth annual Children & Youth Conference in Indianapolis, Sept. 19-21, attendees heard a presentation from Young Marines – a nonprofit youth education program for boys and girls ages 8 through completion of high school that teaches the values of leadership, self-discipline and teamwork.

Over the past few years, Young Marines has received two Child Welfare Foundation grants totaling $130,808 to help purchase and disseminate its Drug Demand Reduction program kits to the more than 300 Young Marine units in the nation. Young Marines objective is to teach young people to live a healthy, drug-free lifestyle, and the kits help assist in those efforts through its anti-drug literature.

Joseph Lusignan, the Young Marines deputy director in Washington State and the drug demand resource officer, told Children & Youth Conference attendees that in his 22 years as a police officer, "I never arrested anyone for drug abuse on methamphetamines or heroin or ecstasy who didn’t start with the gateway drugs. With the Drug Demand Reduction kits, we are closing the gate on drugs because we figured if we close that gate, they’ll never be interested in going to the harder stuff."

Each Drug Demand Reduction kit features: a brochure that describes the influences of the five gateway drugs (tobacco, alcohol, inhalant abuse, marijuana and prescription and over the counter medication); a USB drive in the shape of a key that has info about the gateway drugs; stickers shaped in a stop sign, slap bracelets and pencils that all say, "Close the gate on drugs;" deck of cards that feature question and answers that relate to drugs; and pledge cards that Young Marines sign stating they will be drug free and will educate and encourages others to do the same.

"Every Young Marine unit is now being taught the same thing with the kit. And we are up for an award with the White House because we’ve taken your generosity and made it into something concrete," Lusignan said.

Lusignan encourages Legionnaires to get involved with Young Marines by volunteering, donating or starting a unit. Learn more: www.youngmarines/getinvolved