Leaders lobby for substance abuse funds

By BRYCE KELLY

Mt. Pleasant News

The Henry County Board of Supervisors was joined by a hearty host of community leaders at their latest board meeting on Tuesday. Leading the group was Henry County Substance Abuse Coalition program coordinator, Cherry Sandeen. She, along with the rest of the coalition members, presented the board with a proposed budget for 2015 while also informing the board of some of the coalition?s positive initiatives.

Currently, the Henry County Substance Abuse Coalition receives $125,000 in grant money to carry out various projects and programs for the county. However, with budget cuts set to happen next year, the coalition is aware they will be losing that $125,000 at the end of September 2015.

With the future of the coalition and its programs in mind, Sandeen approached the board of supervisors with a request for a proposed budget of $40,000. This money, if granted to the coalition, will be used on various things from wages for a half-time position within the coalition to marketing for various programs the coalition sponsors.

As it stands, the Henry County Substance Abuse Coalition is represented by 12 various community sectors ranging from parents and local youth to business leaders and law enforcement officials. The goal of the coalition is to be a proactive group that strives to help prevent substance use and abuse amongst Henry County youth and college-age students in the community.

Due to budget cuts, the coalition thought it prudent to address the Henry County supervisors personally and express to them the importance of the coalition?s programs. Dr. Mike Wells, superintendent of the Mt. Pleasant Community School District, was adamant that the coalition should continue to receive support from the community as he can see the positive effects it has had on students within the Mt. Pleasant school system.

?The benefits that our kids have received from this program is just incredible,? said Wells. ?Now we do have some issues with marijuana use in our schools, and we do have a plan that is being developed to address this issue. However, we have changed school policy on various drug-related things as a result of Cherry?s work with Henry County Substance Abuse Coalition, so I can?t say enough about the program. I know the program is having a positive impact on not only our kids, but on our staff as well.?

County attorney Darin Stater echoed Wells? sentiments saying that if programs like the Henry County Substance Abuse Coalition go away, drug and alcohol abuse amongst county youth could start to skyrocket.

?Drug and alcohol abuse is more of an issue today in terms of high school and middle school students than ever before,? said Stater. ?Despite the numbers that we are starting to see in regards to drug use in our schools, it could be a lot worse without programs like the Henry County Substance Abuse Coalition. They are doing a great job of trying to decrease some of the trends we are starting to see.?

Comments from Wells and Stater seem to ring true as more data is being released regarding drug abuse in schools. According to a recent study by the Iowa Consortium for Substance Abuse Research and Evaluation, Iowa is starting to see an increase in marijuana use in youth before they turn 13. Studies also show students in sixth, eighth and eleventh grades are starting to admit less concern for the risks involved in underage alcohol use and abuse.

On a more positive note, however, between the years 2010 and 2012, Henry County saw a slight drop in binge drinking among youth. As more recent reports have yet to be released on this matter, it is still unclear if this pattern is continuing.

With many hoping for an approval of the proposed $40,000 budget for the Henry County Substance Abuse Coalition, the Henry County Board of Supervisors did indicate that they would consider the budget request when county finances are discussed and set for next year. County supervisors hope to have this process completed by early 2015.

In other Henry County Board of Supervisor news, Jake Hotchkiss, county engineer, also gave his brief weekly report at Tuesday?s meeting. Perhaps most pressing on Hotchkiss? agenda was an approval to purchase a $24,500 hydraulic lift for the county engineering staff to use in assisting with their various mechanical operations. This lift, which is portable should it ever need to be moved to a different facility, would replace the county?s current outdated and unusable lift system.

Despite the hefty price of such a piece of equipment, the county supervisors were all in agreement that the lift was needed to carry out the day-to-day duties of the county engineering staff.

?This is a need, not a want,? Supervisor Marc Lindeen said in regards to the lift. ?We as a board of supervisors feel this lift will help better ensure the safety of our employees working on heavy trucks and so on. The bottom line is that if there is something we can do as supervisors to increase workplace safety, then of course we need to do it.?

Besides a request for the lift, Hotchkiss also presented a tile outlet permit, a sanitary sewer outlet permit and a utility permit for the board to approve. The board approved all three.

The next Henry County Board of Supervisors meeting will be Thursday, Dec. 18, at 9 a.m., inside the Henry County Courthouse.