A 17-year-old Elphinstone student is sick of seeing teens overdosed on drugs and involved in risky situations, so she's doing something about it.
Charlene Smith has created a Youth Crime Pre-vention Program that will see Odd Squad Productions and Children of the Street Society teach important safety skills to high school and elementary students on the Coast this year.
"I feel that students such as myself need the tools to be able to prevent dangerous situations from happening or to be able to protect ourselves from being in dangerous situations," Charlene said, explaining why she wanted to start the program.
She recalled a dangerous situation when she was in Grade 9 that underscored the need for this type of education.
"I actually had to save the life of a Grade 12 girl, someone four years older than me. I had to do CPR on her and call the ambulance because she was overdosing in the middle of the road and her friends wouldn't help her because they didn't want to get in trouble," she said. "So that was something I felt that I probably shouldn't have had to experience. It was something that really made me realize there is an issue and these kids are afraid of getting in trouble because obviously they don't know how to talk to their parents about the issues."
She said parent involvement is key in combating the problem, which is why she's scheduling information sessions for parents this year too.
She has secured a $4,000 grant from the traffic fine revenue fund in Sechelt for her project, as well as some personal donations to her cause, giving her $4,900 to get the message out.
The money will pay for Odd Squad presentations for each of the three high schools and Children of the Street Society presentations for elementary schools.
A team of police officers makes up the Odd Squad and they will deliver a presentation focused on specific drug and alcohol trends on the Coast. The officers will use still photos, videos and personal narratives to get their message across about drug prevention.
Children of the Street Society will offer elementary school workshops titled "taking care of ourselves and taking care of others," for Grade 6 and 7 students on the Coast this year.
Through the use of skits, multimedia, games and discussion, children will learn about online safety, healthy relationships and self-esteem.
Parents will also be invited to the society's workshop titled "ITCHA, It Can Happen to Anyone." This workshop will give an overview of youth sexual exploitation and include tips and tricks for parents to combat the problem.
Charlene is currently giving talks about her project to interested groups. If you would like to know more contact her at [email protected].
Odd Squad and Children of the Street Society presentation dates will be scheduled in late March, April and May and will be announced through the schools and in Coast Reporter.
