By Kate McCardell

Published: March 26, 2008

Chipola College students and other citizens of Jackson County gathered Tuesday to discuss the issue of underage drinking.

The Town Hall Meeting, hosted by Panhandle Area Health Network, started with various professionals reading sobering statistics, reinforcing the fact that underage drinking is a problem that won’t easily fade away.

But the meeting may have turned into something more when one speaker challenged everyone in attendance to help their community change its attitude toward underage drinking.

Chairperson for the five-county coalition of Panhandle Alcohol and Drug Abuse Prevention, Karen Edwards introduced herself as a member of a coalition, which she defined as something that requires society as a whole to come to the table to discuss issues.
“I believe you all know most of these statistics ... but yet, we still have these statistics,” said Edwards. “As a coalition, we come together and ask, ‘Why? Why do we still have this problem?”

Edwards told the audience she believes that the “action of people in our society are a manifestation of our beliefs and attitudes.”
“And our common belief is that ‘It will not happen to me,” said Edwards referring to the consequences that come with underage drinking, both for adults who serve minors and the minors who drink.

“I can tell you, I know where the keg parties are in Marianna. And I’m almost 50,” said Edwards.

She said she knows because the parties are being held in the same places as when she was a kid, and yet, they continue.

Edwards referenced other programs represented at the meeting, entities that range from offering addiction prevention and treatment, to school resources, to law enforcement, to faith-based programs.

Edwards explained that one person’s reality might not be reality for the next person, stating as an example that a person whose father has connections in the area may not face the consequences of the laws pertaining to drinking and driving or underage drinking.

For others, she said, drug and alcohol treatment programs might not, in reality, be effective; and other people just need to feel the strong arm of the law.
“We know the rules, come on, y’all ... As a group, we need to come together with a real mission of changing the community’s attitude,” said Edwards. “Each of us brings to the table a different reality for success. We must make those realities connect.”

Edwards said coalitions are effective because they bring every voice, “every reality,” to the table and she urged the public to “take a seat at the table.”
John Hamilton, director of Health and Safety for the Jackson County School District, passionately shared an answer to a question from the audience that asked why 18-year-olds are not allowed to drink, but are allowed to join the military.

He explained that the military has discipline as a base, a factor not often found in drinking alcohol.

“You’re provided with good leadership ... supervised 24 hours a day ... From 18 to 21, you’re still maintained under strict guidelines,” said Hamilton.

Another question from the audience asked the panel of speakers why a parent that is familiar with the maturity of their child should not be able to allow their child to drink at home in a controlled environment.

“I think there are many ways a parents can show their child that they are mature,” said Edwards. “To allow them to break a law is not a way ... In allowing a child to drink and break a rule is telling them that rules may not necessarily apply to them. In our society that is not true, that would be anarchy ... We hope (a parent) would be mature enough to understand that.”