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August 2011
'News
of Hope'
The
new school year is
almost upon us. Time for
a last bit of summer fun
in the sun!
Starting this fall, we
celebrate the 20th
Anniversary Year for LEGACY
OF HOPE®!
What an amazing journey
it has been and what a
privilege.
Susie has shared LEGACY
OF HOPE® with
well over a million
youth and adults in 48
states and several
countries over the
last 20 years. Equally
important has been the
support group sessions
after school assemblies
at which 30,000 teens
have had an opportunity
to talk with Susie and
meet with someone who
understands their
struggle and pain around
alcoholic and/or drug
addicted friends and
families, abuse, grief
and loss. These teens
have found real HOPE in
the assemblies and the
support, knowing that
they are not the only
ones, that the abuse and
neglect in their
homes is not their
fault, and that they do
not have to live as
victims - They now
have choices!
Along this journey, we
have met a great many
"adult
children" of
alcoholic families who
have also found HOPE in
the knowledge that it is
never to late to heal
childhood wounds. They
can become better
parents when they, too,
reach out for help.
Another of the
great joys has been meeting
and working with
some of the most
compassionate, sincere,
conscious and caring
people on the planet!
They have been school
counselors, teachers,
administrators, law
enforcement officers,
therapists,
psychologists, substance
abuse counselors,
parents - they have been
YOU!
We will never be
able to thank or
acknowledge you enough
for the heart and soul
you put into caring
for youth and
families in your own
lives. May you always be
blessed for your gift of
giving HOPE to
others in your sphere of
influence!
Pictured above:
Pic 1 (from left) -
Susie with students from
Northumberland County at
the Pennsylvania 4-H
Achievement Days held
on the Penn State
University campus,
University Park, PA.
Pic 2 - Event
coordinator - Amy Gregor,
4-H Youth
Program Management
Coordinator
for Penn State Extension
with Susie.
Pic 3 - More
student participants at
the 4-H Event. 650
students attended in
all!
(More
pictures at
http://www.legacyofhope.com/year2011-07-26_PA_4-H_State_Conference.htm)
)AUGUST NEWSLETTER
CONTENT
• New
Parent Hotline - Support
for Addressing Teen
Substance Abuse
• Bullying
Starts in Many American
homes
• Ten
Rules for Teen Cell
Phone Use
Access
13 years of newsletter
articles on our website!
Some Fall
Schedule Opportunities
Contact
us to piggyback on
Susie being in your
area. Current plans thru
October, 2011:
Sept. 20-21 - Greeley,
CO - Weld County
Prevention Program
Summit for community
Sept. 26-27 - Bardwell,
KY - schools
Sept. 28-Oct. 2 - Fort
Meyer, FL
Oct. 23 - Oct. 29 -
southeast Alberta,
Canada
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New
Parent
Helpline
Provides
Support
to
Parents
and
Resources to
Address
Teen
Substance
Abuse
By
Celia
Vimont
| July
29, 2011
Join
Together
When
parents
find out
their
teen is
abusing
drugs or
alcohol,
the
family’s
immediate
focus is
generally
on
getting
help for
the
teen.
But
parents
are
often in
great
need of
help
themselves.
They may
need
advice
on what
to say
to their
teen,
how to
evaluate
whether
he or
she
needs
professional
treatment
and
where to find
the
appropriate
substance
abuse
treatment
program
if one
is
needed.
A new
toll-free
telephone
helpline
is
providing
that
assistance.
The
Parents
Toll-Free
Helpline,
1-855-DRUGFREE (1-855-378-4373),
is
staffed
by
clinical
social
workers
with
practical
experience
in
substance
abuse
prevention
and
treatment. The helpline,
launched
by
The
Partnership
at
Drugfree.org, began
taking
calls
in
April
2011
and
will offer
bilingual
support
(English/Spanish)
beginning
in
mid-August.
“When
a
child
has
substance
abuse
issues,
the
whole
family
needs
support,”
says
Ken
Winters,
PhD,
Director
of
the
Center
for
Adolescent
Substance
Abuse
Research,
Professor
in
the
Department
of
Psychiatry
at
the
University
of
Minnesota
and
member
of
The
Partnership
at
Drugfree.org
Science
Advisory
Board.
“Parents
may
need
a
counselor
to
walk
them
through
exactly
what
they
will
say
to
their
teenager
when
they
suspect
substance
abuse.
If
they
have
not
already
done
so,
parents
need
to
establish
rules
about
alcohol
and
other
drugs,
and
consequences
for
breaking
those
rules.
They
may
also
need
help
figuring
out
whether
their
adolescent
should
get
a
professional
assessment.
These
are
some
of
the
things
that
a
counselor
on
the
helpline
can
assist
them
with.”
Starting
Conversations
About
Difficult
Issues
Johanna
Bos,
LMSW,
CASAC,
is
the
lead
parent
support
specialist
for
the
helpline
,
“I
help
parents
start
a
conversation
with
their
child
about
difficult
issues.”
She
also
helps
parents
find
scientifically
valid
information.
Bos
emphasizes
that
the
helpline
provides
information,
but
is
not
a
crisis
line.
The
helpline
is
staffed
Monday-Friday
from
10:00
a.m.
to
6:00
p.m.
Eastern
time.
Parents
who
call
after
hours
can
leave
a
message
and
will
be
contacted
the
next
business
day.
Contact
doesn’t
end
with
the
initial
call.
Bos
asks
callers
if
they
would
like
her
to
follow
up,
and
if
they
agree,
she
calls
within
two
weeks
to
see
if
the
caller
needs
further
help.
She
also
offers
callers
the
option
of
contacting
another
parent
who
has
gone
through
a
similar
situation.
The
launch
of
The
Parents
Toll-Free
Helpline
was
made
possible
through
the
generosity
of
Purdue
Pharma,
the
Bodman
Foundation,
a
private
foundation and
numerous
matching
contributions
from
individuals.
The
entire
article
can
be
read
at
http://www.drugfree.org/join-together/addiction/new-parent-helpline-
provides-support-resources-for-teen-substance-abuse?utm_source=Join+Together+Weekly&utm_campaign
=c25cb436fc-JT+Weekly+News%3A+New+Parent+Helpline+Provides...&utm_medium=email
|
 
We
at LEGACY consider this
article to be of great
value to both adults and
teens. Homes
Bullying
Starts in Many American
homes
Continuing
our effort to address
bullying, we found this article
about sibling bullying
to be of great
importance. This is
especially so based on
what Susie has found in
the field, talking to
thousands of teenagers
for hours after her
school assemblies.
Because students trust
that Susie understands
their pain, hundreds
of adolescents have
shared disturbing tales
of sibling abuse. Most
of the teens who
share also acknowledge
that they come from
families where there is
parental or sibling
alcohol or drug abuse
which exacerbates anger,
rage, resentments and
all kinds of abuse in a
family system.
Teens have shared how
their older/larger
sibling has pulled
them up stairs by the
hair, thrown them into
their rooms, beaten
them, blocked their exit
from the house, hit them
repeatedly and more when
parents are gone. If a
sibling uses drugs or
drinks, this abuse gets worse
and worse.
Sadly, these stories
often include parents
who don't believe their
child when they share
that they are being
abused by a sibling. Or,
as many teens say,
"They may tell my
brother/sister to stop
it, but they just do it
again. My parents won't
do anything about it.
I'm afraid to be at
home."
From Sue Scheff, our
resource at Examiner.com:
Bullying
in
America
is epidemic.
Nearly
1 in 5 students in an
average classroom is
experiencing bullying
Bullying
starts in many American
homes.
Each
year, siblings abuse 19
million children…in
their own home. Nearly 2
million children use a
weapon as a means of
resolving a physical
confrontation with a
sibling. Siblings commit
10 percent of the
murders in the American
family.
The
linkage between bullying
and sibling abuse has
been grossly
overlooked.
Research
has shown a solid link
between bullying and
sibling abuse. Children
who are abused by their
siblings are often
targets to bullies and
often become bullies.
The terrifying world of
sibling abuse and
bullying is exposed in
this book, Girl
in the Water.
The author, Nancy
Kilgore M.S.,
account is a “first”
in the nation.
It
is a brilliantly written
portrayal that offers a
rare and riveting
glimpse of what lies
beneath the surface of
millions of children’s
and adult’s lives. The
author’s first bully
was in her home…her
own sister. The
author leads the reader
on a journey back to her
childhood home—where
she is confronted with
her young dreams and
fears, her familial
bonds, and the profound,
lingering influences
that sibling abuse and
bullying had on her
adulthood and parenting.
Resembling the scariest
fairy tale, the
author’s personal
story is narrated with a
singular devotion to
re-telling her
experiences, no matter
what the cost.
Learn
more on Sibling
Bullies
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| LEGACY
OF HOPE®
- break
through
denial,
create
awareness,
spawn
HOPE!
This
is no
ordinary
message
- it is
a
life-saving,
life-changing
message.
* School
Assemblies
for
Grades 6
thru 12 & meeting
with
students after
assemblies.
*
Counselor/Teacher/Staff
Development
or
In-Service
*
Educational
Parent
Awareness/Community
Ed
Program
*
Conference
Keynote
-
unique,
entertaining, thought-provoking
*
Community
Anti-Drug
Coalition
Events -
hits to
the core
of the
issues
Contact
us at LEGACY
OF HOPE®to
help...
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Ten
Rules for Teen
Cell Phone Use
As
Sue Scheff of
Excaminer.com
says, it’s
exceptionally
common for kids,
teens and
younger, to have
their own cell
phones these
days.
”With these
new privileges
there also
should be some
new rules laid
down by the
parents.”
She
has some
excellent
suggestions for
parents to
consider:
- Surrender
them at
bedtime –Most
kids have a
hard enough
time getting
enough sleep
without
having the
temptation
of
communicating
with their
friends all
night long
via their
cell phone.
Make it easy
for them,
and collect
the phones
before
bedtime.
- No
loaning your
phone–No
loaning out
your phone
to your
friends.
- No
phones at
the table
–If
your family
tries to
make
mealtime,
family time,
keep the
phones away
from the
dining room.
- No
phone until
after
homework -
The homework
will take
ten times as
long if they
have their
cell phone
on the table
next to
them.
- No
embarrassing
photos –Photos
of your
siblings
half-naked
are not to
be taken
with your
cell phone.
Responsible
use of the
camera
function
should be
required.
- No
texting in
church –As
a parent,
you should
be setting
it as a
ground rule
before they
arrive at
the service.
- No
phones on
family night
–If
you’ve
tried to
create an
evening
during the
week for
your family
to spend
time
together.
Cell phones
are bound to
work against
your goal.
Parents and
kids should
turn them
off.
- Batterycharging
is up to
them –Cell
phones are a
good
opportunity
for kids to
learn
personal
responsibility.
- Drive
with both
hands –Obviously,
this isn’t
just for
kids, but
teen drivers
are
especially
susceptible
to
distraction.
Absolutely,
NO talking
or texting
on your cell
while behind
the wheel.
Read
more on Examiner.com
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