Accomplishments in 2014

Mental Health First Aid– As of July of 2014, Officer Tobyne has trained & certified over 45 Wakefield teachers in the skills needed to identify, understand, and respond to signs of mental illnesses and substance use disorders in their students.

Former Celtic Chris Herren– This dynamic speaker shared his experience with drug and alcohol abuse with both students and parents at Galvin Middle School on June 3, 2014; enthusiasm from these presentations launched the first “Project Purple Day” where middle school students wore purple and pledged to live a healthy lifestyle consisting of no drugs and no alcohol. http://goprojectpurple.com/

Marijuana Zoning Article– On May 12, 2014 this article passed at town meeting by a vote of 100-7; this limits the potential sites of medical marijuana sales to the heavy commercial industrial zone near 128 Mazda and the Wakefield Elks.

RX Take Back– On April 26, 2014 Wake-Up hosted this national take back event which promoted use of the town’s prescription drug and syringe drop boxes located at the Wakefield Police Station. Residents are able to dispose of unused or expired medications as well as syringes 24 hours a day, 7 days a week to insure these don’t get into the wrong hands. We continue to market these resources through partnerships with local pharmacies and the Senior Center.

1^st Annual Wakefield Parent University– On March 22, 2014, 150 Wakefield parents/caregivers heard from a key note speaker on “Raising Confident, Resilient Children in a Culture of Pressure;” the Four Hour Academy included several workshops on academic and social-emotional topics.

Youth Risk Behavior Survey– On March 7, 2014, Wakefield Public Schools and Wake-Up administered this survey to all Wakefield students in grades 7-12; data is compared to the national and state averages as well as the 2011 Wakefield YRBS results and is used to inform programming and other prevention strategies in the public schools and community. See School Committee Presentation: http://prezi.com/p17vj6rorteb/?utm_campaign=share&utm_medium=copy%20

Community Forum on Heroin and Opiates– On April 8^th, 2014, this televised forum was held at the Public Safety Building and featured experts on the Opiate Abuse Epidemic.

New Alcohol Regulations– New regulations went into effect on January 1, 2014; Wake-Up sponsored SAFE ID Check training for all Wakefield Liquor Licensees.

New Drug Paraphernalia Regulations– These regulations went into effect on January 1, 2014 as well. Prior to these regulations, of the 8 convenience stores checked, 100% sold some sort of drug paraphernalia, including blunt wraps, while 60% carried paraphernalia including pipes, hookahs, glass “love roses” and copper scouring pads, such as choreboys.

MOAPC (MA Opioid Abuse Prevention Collaborative) – Catherine Dhingra (Project Director), is an active part of this group consisting of representatives from Medford, Malden, Melrose, Reading, Stoneham, and Wakefield. http://masstapp.edc.org/massachusetts-opioid-abuse-prevention-collaborative.

2014 Wakefield Youth Health and Safety Guide – This comprehensive guide was published in the Wakefield Item and mailed out to all homes of 5^th-12^th graders. http://wakefieldma.virtualtownhall.net/Public_documents/WakefieldMA_HealthNews/049C8999-000F8513.0/HealthSafety2014.pdf

Text-a-Tip Program– This program was set up with the Wakefield Police Department in January 2014 to allow people another way to anonymously submit tips to the police, in addition to the voice tip line. Web-based tips may be submitted here: http://www.citizenobserver.com/cov6/app/webTipForm.html?id=10761

Community/Parent Presentations– topics include current substance abuse trends and strategies to address these; audiences include Wakefield Rotary, Galvin PTO and parents, Dolbeare PTO & parents.