The Catskill Chronicle

SULLIVAN COUNTY, NY (March 20, 2014) – In recent weeks, the Recovery Center has been raising awareness of its “Parents Who Host” marketing campaign in Sullivan County.

The “Parents Who Host” messaging is visible at several locations around the County, including: Route 17, off Exit 106; Wal*Mart; the Department of Motor Vehicles; ShopRite in Liberty; the Callicoon Movie Theatre; Concord Road; Route 17B; the Trading Post; and at various dining establishments. Soon these efforts will expand to other media forums as well.

It is hoped that these marketing initiatives will help to further drive the message home that underage drinking is against the law; that it poses serious risks to our youth, including inhibiting normal brain development and contributing to emergency room admissions for alcohol poisonings, falls, and sexual assaults; and reinforces the message that law enforcement is serious about protecting our County’s youth and willing to hold parents accountable for any, and all infractions.

Since the passage of the County’s Social Host Law, No. 4, in December 2012, the Recovery Center, working in conjunction with Prevention First-NY!, and with the Sullivan County CareCorps Coalition, has worked diligently to educate parents around the ramifications of this law through their many marketing efforts. Our focus? Taking up the gauntlet to target a far too pervasive community foe – adults allowing and sometimes even hosting under-age drinking parties.

Unfortunately, underage drinking is still regarded as a right of passage among many in our community, and as a behavior that is somewhat expected. The messaging brought forth by the ‘Parents Who Host’ marketing campaign is: that it is still illegal to provide minors with alcohol; that parents should refrain from hosting parties for their teens where alcohol is served; and that anyone wishing to report a party, where underage drinking is occurring, can call the toll-free number provided.

According the Pacific Institute for Research and Evaluation (PIRE), underage drinking costs New York residents an estimated $3.3 billion annually. Youth violence (homicide, suicide, aggravated assault) and traffic crashes, attributable to alcohol use by underage youth, represent the largest percentage of these costs; though a host of other problems, i.e., complications resulting in fetal alcohol syndrome and teen pregnancies, contribute substantially, costing New Yorkers an annually estimated $72 million.

Sullivan County CareCorps Coalition has been working toward changing these costly outcomes via the introduction of evidence-based strategies that can successfully restrict youth access to alcohol. The Social Host Ordinance was one such strategy that allowed the County to hold adults, 18 or older, accountable for hosting parties at which underage drinking is permitted. First offenses are punishable by a fine of $500; with subsequent offenses subject to a $1,000 fine, plus possible jail time. Presiding judges also have the added option of mandating an educational component or community service to sentencing.

Underage drinking is unhealthy, unsafe, illegal, and it costs all of us in the long run. Let’s work together to keep our youth safe.

To learn more about the law, or for more information on how you can help take a stand against underage drinking within the County, please contact Aleta Gomez at 845-794-8080, ext. 170.