Students Launch Campaign Against Underage Drinking

| December 9, 2010 | Health and Wellness, School Notebook | No Comments

Team Medford

If this banner looks familiar you might have seen it on the back of an MBTA bus.

Medford High School Students poured through the halls in their school colors, the sounds of excitement and band music filling the air. As everyone filed into the gym for the pep rally before the big Thanksgiving game, the new Team Medford banner did not go unnoticed. Team Medford: Join the Winning Team to Prevent Underage Drinking is a new project of the Medford Substance Abuse Task Force. Over 1,000 bracelets and key chains were handed out to students, athletes, teachers, coaches and community figures in an effort to unite the community in fighting the battle to prevent underage drinking.

Members of the Medford Substance Abuse Task Force joined students in cheering as they connected with one another and were asked to join the winning team. Many of our young leaders are very pleased to be a part of the team and were happy to help distribute bracelets while getting their fellow peers to commit to our team: Team Medford. Everyone is a key player on Team Medford, and many stepped up today showing their pride for the community.

“Everyone was in high spirits,” reported Penelope Bruce, the Underage Drinking Prevention Coordinator, “the positive energy was contagious and many of our youth wanted to jump on board.”

Team Medford is a collaborative effort in supporting our youth in which Team TADD (Teens Against Drinking and Drugs) played an enormous role.

“It’s great that we finally have a positive mission that unites the city, while getting the word out about underage drinking and drug abuse issues right in our own community”, said Crystal Chandler, a Team TADD leader, and member of Medford’s Substance Abuse Task Force.

This is a great start for Team Medford and a beginning that is headed in the right direction. Many more activities and local events will be organized to get more team players involved. For more information contact Penny Bruce at prbruce@medford.org or check us out online at www.medfordhealthmatters.org.

– Information from Penny Bruce, Underage Drinking Prevention Program Coordinator,Medford Board of Health/Medford Health Matters