SWAT promotes awareness, safety in youth

Shannon LeClair

Times Reporter

 

People may be wondering about the new billboards by Holy Cross Collegiate and Strathmore High School. They have catchy phrases, like cigarettes are killers that travel in pack, promoting awareness and making good choices.

The billboards are a part of the Strathmore-Wheatland Addiction Team’s (SWAT) newest initiative.  

Every month the message on the signs change. The signs are meant to provide positive messages related to building assets, encouraging positive behaviour in the community and good reasons to not use drugs and alcohol. 

“There are community drug coalitions all over Alberta and what they are, is they’re an attempt to get multiple agencies with different expertise looking together at a common problem, which would be the problem of substance abuse within your community,” said Crystal Wahl, a chairperson with SWAT. 

SWAT first came to the area in 2007, main focusing on preventing risky behaviour and providing education. 

“If somebody has an addiction problem there are people we can refer them to and there’s treatment centres, but we were looking at how can we prevent it in this community more,” said Wahl. 

“Our local coalition uses those 40 developmental assets to decide what can we do to build those assets and thus reduce the use of the risky behaviour.”

The 40 developmental assets come from a report on putting positive youth development into practice. Included in the 40 developmental assets are both external and internal assets that a youth has, or could have. For external assets some of the examples fall under three headings: support, empowerment, boundaries and expectations. Under each of the four listed are subheadings listing the different assets that fall under them. The internal assets main headings include a commitment to learning, positive values, special competencies and having a positive identity. 

Educating youth about the dangers of drugs and alcohol is one of SWAT’s main initiatives, and so there is an information night coming up this month.

“Because of all the recent tragedies related to ecstasy use, both in this community and in Calgary, we are going to have an information night,” said Wahl. 

It will take place at the Youth Club of Strathmore building at 170 Brent Blvd, and the session will run from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. It is a drug awareness night, and Wahl says SWAT members will be making the presentation. There will be discussion about ecstasy and its effects, and also about other common drugs. 

SWAT is also looking for members. Meetings are held one Thursday a month at noon at the FCSS offices, and anyone interested can contact Sharon Tibeau at Family and Community Support Services at 934-5335.