Hi Everyone! Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! I hope everyone has had a great holiday season so far. Everyone loves the holiday season, all the partying and festivities. This is a perfect time to remind ourselves to be safe, and to make good choices. The holiday season is one of the biggest times for people to become involved with alcohol related accidents. New Year's Eve is the second most fatal holiday as far as drinking and driving goes. Please remember to be safe out there, everyone.
Also, a reminder to anyone that may be new to SRSLY, underage drinking is illegal. The consequences for a minor drinking are heavy: jail, fines, the whole bit. It's great to let your children have a fun time and have fun with their friends during the season, but please, be the best host possible and DON'T serve them alcohol. Alcohol has irreversible effects on the brain until the mid 20s.
Have a SRSLY safe holiday!
Ellen
PS - Don't miss the SRSLY New Year's Eve Party, 4:00 - 8:00 pm at Beach Middle School on the 31st. Free and fun!
Sunday, December 27, 2009
Sunday, November 15, 2009
Minimum Legal Drinking Age
MINIMUM LEGAL DRINKING AGE: 21
The issue of the minimum legal drinking age (or MLDA) has been on the news, and was recently discussed on the CBS program 60 Minutes, and Comedy Central’s Colbert Report. If you would like to read John McCardell’s argument for lowering the drinking age to 18, go to www.chooseresonsibility.org.
The non-profit organization Mothers Against Drunk Driving opposes this change. Go to www.madd.org to read why. Here are some Michigan-specific traffic crash data on the subject:
“In 1972, when the drinking age fell to 18, drinking drivers ages 18-20 in crashes more than doubled. In one year. By the last year of the 18 law, it had more than tripled. In 1979, we went back to 21, and those crashes fell by about a third. The number of drinking drivers ages 18-20 in crashes did not fall back below the 1971 number until 1990. The trend on fatalities was less severe. It didn't quite double, never did triple, and dipped below 1971 levels in 1985.” Source: Office of Highway Safety Planning, Michigan State Police.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration estimates that the current minimum drinking age law has saved over 800 lives per year over the past five years. Source: www.nhtsa.gov.
The issue of the minimum legal drinking age (or MLDA) has been on the news, and was recently discussed on the CBS program 60 Minutes, and Comedy Central’s Colbert Report. If you would like to read John McCardell’s argument for lowering the drinking age to 18, go to www.chooseresonsibility.org.
The non-profit organization Mothers Against Drunk Driving opposes this change. Go to www.madd.org to read why. Here are some Michigan-specific traffic crash data on the subject:
“In 1972, when the drinking age fell to 18, drinking drivers ages 18-20 in crashes more than doubled. In one year. By the last year of the 18 law, it had more than tripled. In 1979, we went back to 21, and those crashes fell by about a third. The number of drinking drivers ages 18-20 in crashes did not fall back below the 1971 number until 1990. The trend on fatalities was less severe. It didn't quite double, never did triple, and dipped below 1971 levels in 1985.” Source: Office of Highway Safety Planning, Michigan State Police.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration estimates that the current minimum drinking age law has saved over 800 lives per year over the past five years. Source: www.nhtsa.gov.
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
Hi from Louisville!
Well it's Day 3 of the Mid-year Training Institute with Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America (CADCA). We're in Louisville at the Downtown Marriott. It's hot and muggy outside, but it's FREEZING in here! They just loooooove air conditioning down here.
But besides the temperature extremes, I've had a great time meeting and learning from other coalition leaders, and hearing about what their communities are doing to prevent destructive behaviors. I've also had the chance to share some of what we're doing in Chelsea, and get some feedback and reactions. (everyone loves the Chaz/CPTN SRSLY idea - way to go Zoe!!!)
Now we're about to get started with a session on "Social Hosting Ordinances" and enforcing laws against parents hosting teen drinking parties. It's a packed room, full of other folks who want to prevent tragedies in their communities, that are so often the result of teen substance abuse. I can't wait to hear what other coalitions are doing to fight this problem, and what SRSLY can do in Chelsea.
Before I go, if anyone wants to review any of the presentations from this week, they're all going to be posted online at www.cadca.org. This is an awesome website with tons of resources, so check it out, and let me know if you see anything you think we can and should use in SRSLY!
But besides the temperature extremes, I've had a great time meeting and learning from other coalition leaders, and hearing about what their communities are doing to prevent destructive behaviors. I've also had the chance to share some of what we're doing in Chelsea, and get some feedback and reactions. (everyone loves the Chaz/CPTN SRSLY idea - way to go Zoe!!!)
Now we're about to get started with a session on "Social Hosting Ordinances" and enforcing laws against parents hosting teen drinking parties. It's a packed room, full of other folks who want to prevent tragedies in their communities, that are so often the result of teen substance abuse. I can't wait to hear what other coalitions are doing to fight this problem, and what SRSLY can do in Chelsea.
Before I go, if anyone wants to review any of the presentations from this week, they're all going to be posted online at www.cadca.org. This is an awesome website with tons of resources, so check it out, and let me know if you see anything you think we can and should use in SRSLY!
Friday, May 29, 2009
SRSLY Broadcasts
SRSLY Seeking Video and Audio Submissions for Broadcasts
The SRSLY coalition is inviting youth and adults to create video and audio broadcasts for its new SRSLY Broadcasts effort. The broadcasts may be showcased on SRSLY Cinema nights in downtown Chelsea, Channel 18 cable television, YouTube, the SRSLY web site and the Chelsea School District web site.
“We’re excited to launch this new expressive component of SRSLY,” explains Sharon Kegerreis, project leader and parent volunteer for SRSLY Broadcasts. “We hope that SRSLY Broadcasts will encourage people to develop a broad spectrum of video and audio submissions.”
Submissions may include a variety of media formats, such as original movie shorts. High school student Zöe Suffety, an intern for Edgar Norman Creative, developed several movie shorts featuring CPTNSRSLY (Captain SRSLY), a brightly painted mannequin bearing a color likeness to the Hulk. Suffety’s movie shorts will be showcased on June 25, the inaugural SRSLY Cinema night after Sounds and Sights on Thursday nights in downtown Chelsea.
“It was fun getting a taste of advertising,” says Suffety. “I put some time restrictions (on the movie shorts) and integrated different things I wanted to accomplish. It was a pretty interesting and, overall, I had a great experience.”
Other examples of broadcasts include public service announcements, commercials, interviews, and testimonials. Broadcast “producers” may highlight youth or adults involved in extracurricular activities. These activities may include any topic. Examples include hiking in the area state parks, raising chickens, running in the Run for the Rolls family race, or grilling in the backyard.
“Chelsea is a vibrant community of writers, actors, artists, and producers. As a Board member of Chelsea Center for the Arts, I am exposed to so many talented people,” says Kegerreis. “As a mother of a teen and 5-year-old, I am in awe of the limitless imagination of my daughters and their friends. SRSLY Broadcasts gives our community members another avenue for positive self-expression.”
Submissions should be in a fully-edited video or audio format. Broadcasts must be saved in MPG or AVI formats and should express one of the defined risk and protective factors that are priorities for the SRSLY coalition and be fully edited and ready to be broadcasted. (See side bar.)
To submit broadcasts, complete the two-page application form located on the SRSLY web site at www.srslychelsea.org. Submit the completed form and your broadcasts to Kegerreis at sharon@michiganvine.com and co-project leader Angie O’Neill at angelaoneill@aol.com. There is no deadline for submission. Any questions may also be directed to the project leaders by email.
"SRSLY Broadcasts will ultimately serve as prevention education pieces for our community,” explains Angie O’Neill, chair of SRSLY’s Marketing and Evaluation Committee. “The sky is the limit regarding ways to incorporate prevention messages into each broadcast, and the steps are simple to ensure that your project aligns with the mission of SRSLY.”
The SRSLY Broadcasts application is available at www.srslychelsea.org. SRSLY Broadcasts should integrate one (or more) of the following SRSLY Coalition Risk and Protective Factors:
Priority Risk Factors the SRSLY coalition wishes to decrease:
*Youth access to alcohol and other drugs in the community
*Parental approval of alcohol and other drugs
*Youth approval/use (peer pressure) of alcohol and other drugs
Priority Protective Factors the SRSLY coalition wishes to increase:
*Opportunities for positive community involvement
*Opportunities for positive family involvement
*Commitment to school
SRSLY Broadcasts are being immediately accepted. Submit your application and fully edited video or audio to sharon@michiganvine.com and angelaoneill@aol.com.
The SRSLY coalition is inviting youth and adults to create video and audio broadcasts for its new SRSLY Broadcasts effort. The broadcasts may be showcased on SRSLY Cinema nights in downtown Chelsea, Channel 18 cable television, YouTube, the SRSLY web site and the Chelsea School District web site.
“We’re excited to launch this new expressive component of SRSLY,” explains Sharon Kegerreis, project leader and parent volunteer for SRSLY Broadcasts. “We hope that SRSLY Broadcasts will encourage people to develop a broad spectrum of video and audio submissions.”
Submissions may include a variety of media formats, such as original movie shorts. High school student Zöe Suffety, an intern for Edgar Norman Creative, developed several movie shorts featuring CPTNSRSLY (Captain SRSLY), a brightly painted mannequin bearing a color likeness to the Hulk. Suffety’s movie shorts will be showcased on June 25, the inaugural SRSLY Cinema night after Sounds and Sights on Thursday nights in downtown Chelsea.
“It was fun getting a taste of advertising,” says Suffety. “I put some time restrictions (on the movie shorts) and integrated different things I wanted to accomplish. It was a pretty interesting and, overall, I had a great experience.”
Other examples of broadcasts include public service announcements, commercials, interviews, and testimonials. Broadcast “producers” may highlight youth or adults involved in extracurricular activities. These activities may include any topic. Examples include hiking in the area state parks, raising chickens, running in the Run for the Rolls family race, or grilling in the backyard.
“Chelsea is a vibrant community of writers, actors, artists, and producers. As a Board member of Chelsea Center for the Arts, I am exposed to so many talented people,” says Kegerreis. “As a mother of a teen and 5-year-old, I am in awe of the limitless imagination of my daughters and their friends. SRSLY Broadcasts gives our community members another avenue for positive self-expression.”
Submissions should be in a fully-edited video or audio format. Broadcasts must be saved in MPG or AVI formats and should express one of the defined risk and protective factors that are priorities for the SRSLY coalition and be fully edited and ready to be broadcasted. (See side bar.)
To submit broadcasts, complete the two-page application form located on the SRSLY web site at www.srslychelsea.org. Submit the completed form and your broadcasts to Kegerreis at sharon@michiganvine.com and co-project leader Angie O’Neill at angelaoneill@aol.com. There is no deadline for submission. Any questions may also be directed to the project leaders by email.
"SRSLY Broadcasts will ultimately serve as prevention education pieces for our community,” explains Angie O’Neill, chair of SRSLY’s Marketing and Evaluation Committee. “The sky is the limit regarding ways to incorporate prevention messages into each broadcast, and the steps are simple to ensure that your project aligns with the mission of SRSLY.”
The SRSLY Broadcasts application is available at www.srslychelsea.org. SRSLY Broadcasts should integrate one (or more) of the following SRSLY Coalition Risk and Protective Factors:
Priority Risk Factors the SRSLY coalition wishes to decrease:
*Youth access to alcohol and other drugs in the community
*Parental approval of alcohol and other drugs
*Youth approval/use (peer pressure) of alcohol and other drugs
Priority Protective Factors the SRSLY coalition wishes to increase:
*Opportunities for positive community involvement
*Opportunities for positive family involvement
*Commitment to school
SRSLY Broadcasts are being immediately accepted. Submit your application and fully edited video or audio to sharon@michiganvine.com and angelaoneill@aol.com.
Thursday, March 5, 2009
SRSLY St. Patrick's Day Party
When: Tuesday, March 17th, St. Patrick's Day, 7PM - 9PM
Where: At the Depot
Who: Beach and CHS students
What: Party - music, food, games, prizes, fun.
Why: Good excuse to hang out with your friends until 9pm on a school night.
How much: Free entry for everyone who wears something green, $5 for everyone else.
Come and join the fun! It will be a blast!
Where: At the Depot
Who: Beach and CHS students
What: Party - music, food, games, prizes, fun.
Why: Good excuse to hang out with your friends until 9pm on a school night.
How much: Free entry for everyone who wears something green, $5 for everyone else.
Come and join the fun! It will be a blast!
Boredom and Entertainment
On the subject of small towns like Chelsea, where there is nothing to do...
"People young or old who complain about the boredom "out there" in their town should look inside, where they'll find that their boredom really comes from within. Boring people get bored. Some local kid complaining about how there's nothing to do in Chelsea mostly just needs to, as they say, get a life: find the wisdom or backbone to engage with other people and get a larger purpose than filling his or her hours scanning for a new amusement. Entertainment is itself like a drug: you develop tolerance, and, eventually, you need bigger and bigger hits, until, eventually, you just sit there on the couch thinking there's nothing much to do. There are plenty of bored people in Manhattan: it's not the place, it's the person. Outfits like SRSLY can help not by providing more amusements to soak up teen ennui, but by hosting opportunities for people to discover what joy and purpose can be found in engagement with and service to others, even if most people are a pain in the butt in one way or other. You're never really going to be happy until you stop trying to stay entertained, and Chelsea's as good a place as any, and probably better than most, to figure that out. Wherever you are, you're going to find your happiness in the people around you, if you find it at all. So seeing as how we're here, let's have another party, y' know?" - Jeff Prenevost, SRSLY Coalition Member, currently working with Ellen and Katie Christie to plan the entertainment for our St. Patrick's Day Party.
Still think Chelsea kids drink and do drugs because they're "bored?"
"People young or old who complain about the boredom "out there" in their town should look inside, where they'll find that their boredom really comes from within. Boring people get bored. Some local kid complaining about how there's nothing to do in Chelsea mostly just needs to, as they say, get a life: find the wisdom or backbone to engage with other people and get a larger purpose than filling his or her hours scanning for a new amusement. Entertainment is itself like a drug: you develop tolerance, and, eventually, you need bigger and bigger hits, until, eventually, you just sit there on the couch thinking there's nothing much to do. There are plenty of bored people in Manhattan: it's not the place, it's the person. Outfits like SRSLY can help not by providing more amusements to soak up teen ennui, but by hosting opportunities for people to discover what joy and purpose can be found in engagement with and service to others, even if most people are a pain in the butt in one way or other. You're never really going to be happy until you stop trying to stay entertained, and Chelsea's as good a place as any, and probably better than most, to figure that out. Wherever you are, you're going to find your happiness in the people around you, if you find it at all. So seeing as how we're here, let's have another party, y' know?" - Jeff Prenevost, SRSLY Coalition Member, currently working with Ellen and Katie Christie to plan the entertainment for our St. Patrick's Day Party.
Still think Chelsea kids drink and do drugs because they're "bored?"
Friday, February 13, 2009
SRSLY Survey Sensation Sweeping Chelsea!
By: Allie Reynolds, 7th grade
Attention everyone in Chelsea: SRSLY needs your opinion! The Chair of the Marketing and Evaluation sub-committee of SRSLY, Angela O’Neill, has created a survey designed to get the public’s opinion on SRSLY. It is brand new and posted visibly at www.SRSLYchelsea.org. It was designed to give SRSLY the push they need, and to let SRSLY know what people think. It takes less than five minutes to complete and is a great way to get your thoughts and opinions into SRSLY.
The results will be used to tell SRSLY what the community wants, and where to really focus their efforts. Anyone who has internet access should take this survey because the members of SRSLY need to know everyone’s opinion. So log on to www.SRSLYchelsea.org and give us your ideas.
This survey is very important to SRSLY because it tells us what people think, and it lets SRSLY know what our next step should be.
Madisen Powell, Secretary of the Marketing and Evaluation sub-committee says, “A survey is important because it helps SRSLY know what they need to work on, and what the community and SRSLY don’t agree on.”
SRSLY needs the people of Chelsea to tell us what they want us to do about destructive behavior in Chelsea youth.
“A survey is important because it’s always helpful to get other kids’ and parents’ opinions on SRSLY,” says Julia Porter, 7th grade student and member of SRSLY.
This survey is a great way to get the community’s voice to the leaders of SRSLY.
“This survey is important because we need to know where we’re starting before we can know where we’re going,” said Reiley Lewis, the Director of SRSLY. “This information will help us see if SRSLY is making a difference in the community.”
The results of the survey are going to be presented on March 12th, so hurry and take the survey before it’s too late. We want as many people as possible to take the survey. The more opinions the better, so spread the word! If you’re a parent, tell your kids and the people you work with. If you’re a kid, tell your friends. The students at Beach Middle School have already started taking the survey. Please help SRSLY by giving them your ideas. If you have access to the internet, be sure not to miss this opportunity to get your ideas into a local organization! So give us your thoughts, beliefs, and ideas on SRSLY, and take the survey. Give SRSLY a piece of your mind!
Attention everyone in Chelsea: SRSLY needs your opinion! The Chair of the Marketing and Evaluation sub-committee of SRSLY, Angela O’Neill, has created a survey designed to get the public’s opinion on SRSLY. It is brand new and posted visibly at www.SRSLYchelsea.org. It was designed to give SRSLY the push they need, and to let SRSLY know what people think. It takes less than five minutes to complete and is a great way to get your thoughts and opinions into SRSLY.
The results will be used to tell SRSLY what the community wants, and where to really focus their efforts. Anyone who has internet access should take this survey because the members of SRSLY need to know everyone’s opinion. So log on to www.SRSLYchelsea.org and give us your ideas.
This survey is very important to SRSLY because it tells us what people think, and it lets SRSLY know what our next step should be.
Madisen Powell, Secretary of the Marketing and Evaluation sub-committee says, “A survey is important because it helps SRSLY know what they need to work on, and what the community and SRSLY don’t agree on.”
SRSLY needs the people of Chelsea to tell us what they want us to do about destructive behavior in Chelsea youth.
“A survey is important because it’s always helpful to get other kids’ and parents’ opinions on SRSLY,” says Julia Porter, 7th grade student and member of SRSLY.
This survey is a great way to get the community’s voice to the leaders of SRSLY.
“This survey is important because we need to know where we’re starting before we can know where we’re going,” said Reiley Lewis, the Director of SRSLY. “This information will help us see if SRSLY is making a difference in the community.”
The results of the survey are going to be presented on March 12th, so hurry and take the survey before it’s too late. We want as many people as possible to take the survey. The more opinions the better, so spread the word! If you’re a parent, tell your kids and the people you work with. If you’re a kid, tell your friends. The students at Beach Middle School have already started taking the survey. Please help SRSLY by giving them your ideas. If you have access to the internet, be sure not to miss this opportunity to get your ideas into a local organization! So give us your thoughts, beliefs, and ideas on SRSLY, and take the survey. Give SRSLY a piece of your mind!
Tuesday, January 6, 2009
SRSLY Fun New Year's Eve Party
What a great party! I hope the rest of the 200 people at the Seriously Fun, SRSLY New Year's Eve Party had as much fun as I did.
Hard to say what my favorite part was... I LOVED the music! I had never seen the Chelsea House Orchestra play before, and I was definitely impressed. Very cool. Of course I also enjoyed seeing so many kids having fun - playing Guitar Hero, getting their faces painted, decorating cookies (suppiles donated by Cole Funeral Chapel), and playing soccer and basketball. But I think best of all was watching friends and families work together to eat half a pie (donated from Meijer and Polly's) during the final event in the SRSLY Olympics. I know everyone was already full of pizza (donated by Jet's and Thompson's), donuts (donated by Pierce's), sandwiches (donated by Zou Zou's), popcorn, and pop... oh, and six different kids of chili, all washed down with cornbread! But even with those busting bellies, every team dug deep and ate their share of pie.
Hard to say what my favorite part was... I LOVED the music! I had never seen the Chelsea House Orchestra play before, and I was definitely impressed. Very cool. Of course I also enjoyed seeing so many kids having fun - playing Guitar Hero, getting their faces painted, decorating cookies (suppiles donated by Cole Funeral Chapel), and playing soccer and basketball. But I think best of all was watching friends and families work together to eat half a pie (donated from Meijer and Polly's) during the final event in the SRSLY Olympics. I know everyone was already full of pizza (donated by Jet's and Thompson's), donuts (donated by Pierce's), sandwiches (donated by Zou Zou's), popcorn, and pop... oh, and six different kids of chili, all washed down with cornbread! But even with those busting bellies, every team dug deep and ate their share of pie.
Best of all, the whole thing was the idea of kids. You guys came up with this concept at our SRSLY youth meeting way back in November. You said that there need to be more good options for fun things to do on evenings and weekends in Chelsea - and look what happened! The great thing about this community is that adults really do care about kids, and they want to help them be happy, and support them in their decision to stay drug and alcohol free. So when you guys said you wanted a party, adults made it happen. Of course, we couldn't have done it without your help at the brainstorming session (as a non-gamer, I never would have thought to have Guitar Hero there, but that was definitely a highlight for lots of people at the party!) So keep those ideas coming, and if we continue to work together, we can make lots more good stuff happen.
Obviously this type of fun doesn't just happen - it takes time and energy to plan and coordinate all the moving parts, and it takes warm bodies to make it happen when the time comes. Everyone who came owes a HUGE thank you to the following volunteers, who helped plan, organize, and pull off the srsly fun party:
Andy Ingall
Abby Ingall
Pat Conlin
Beth Morris
Jason Boyer
John Knox
Cyndi Jabara
Samantha Jabara
Nancy Fritzmeier
Thuy Bui
Sara Wild
Chris Stehlik
Patty Sweeney
Tim Sweeney
Tracy McCormic
Emma Argiroff
Hope Morrow
Jim O'Neill
Angie O'Neill
Nancy Siegrist
Gary Siegrist
The Rotary and Kiwanis Clubs of Chelsea also deserve a big thank you for their donations of funding for supplies and refreshments, as does the Chelsea School District for the donation of space and equipment. (Pat Little suggested we use the smartboards for video games - genius!) And thanks to the McCormic Family for donating all the black balloons. They looked great with our green ones. :)
So in closing, thanks to everyone who made this possible, and I can't wait for the SECOND annual SRSLY Fun New Year's Eve Party!
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