News

40 Years: 40 Stories

To help commemorate Project Rehab's 40th anniversary, we are gathering 40 stories from former clients.  If you have a story to share about how a Project Rehab program improved your life, please tell us about it by sending an email to successstory@projectrehab.org by Monday, June 9, 2008. 

Yo Puedo Participants Present Community Briefing on Underage Drinking

(Grand Rapids, MI) --- Local youth participating in national youth-directed movement to reduce alcohol problems recently conducted research to understand perceptions among peers about underage alcohol use.  This unique peer-to-peer research was administered by youth taking part in a movement called “Take It Back”.  The movement includes more than 350 youth groups from 49 states who will simultaneously hold youth-led community briefings in March to share their research findings. 

The local participants in the movement, from the Yo Puedo program of Life Guidance Wellness & Prevention Services, present the results of their research conducting in Grand Rapidsat a Thursday, March 6 community briefing at the Hispanic Center of West Michigan.   In addition to Yo Puedo participants, the community briefing panel will also include Denise Hebert, a prevention specialist from Network 180, and Eduardo Sánchez from Grand Rapids Public Schools.  The Hispanic Center of West Michigan is located at 1205 Grandville SW in Grand Rapids, Michigan

According to utakeitback.org, “Take It Back is not an organization, a program or a curriculum. It is different from a group or an organization. It is a movement.  It is about shaking the public consciousness. It is about pulling back the curtain, lifting the rug, opening the window – getting to the truth behind the connection between youth and alcohol.”  The Take It Back Community Briefings are sponsored by FACE – Resources, Training & Action on Alcohol Issues, a national nonprofit organization.  The Take It Back movement is driven by facts like these:

• Each day, more than 5,400 kids in the United States under age 16 take their first drink (2005 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, http://www.oas.samhsa.gov/NSDUHlatest.htm)
• Each year, more than 97,000 students between the ages of 18 to 24 are victims of alcohol-related sexual assault or date rape (Hingson et. al., 2005, http://www.utakeitback.org/Issue/Statistics)
• In the US alone, alcohol kills more kids than all illegal drugs combined (National Institutes on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, 2003)

Yo Puedo, which translates to “I can” in English, is a program of Life Guidance Wellness & Prevention Services.  The program has provided empowerment and wellness services to Hispanic/Latino youth at no charge to the program participant for 20 years in Grand Rapids.  In 1995 the program received a national award as an Exemplary Program for prevention programming SAMHSA (Substance Abuse Mental Health Services Administration).  Life Guidance Wellness & Prevention Services is a part of Proaction Behavioral Health Alliance, a collection of nonprofit organizations. 

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Volunteers Invited to Plan Recovery Palooza 2008

Recovery Palooza is an annual event held in September during National Alcohol and Drug Recovery Awareness Month. This year’s event, held on Saturday the 20th at John Ball Park in Grand Rapids, features live entertainment, fun family activities, food, community resource information, support group meetings, and more.  Planning this event is almost as much fun as attending—would you like to help us?  We’d love to hear your ideas about how Recovery Palooza 2008 can better support the recovery community.  If you’re interested in sharing your thoughts, please contact Susan Smith at Network180 at (616) 336-2460.

Improve a life!

Your support can help ensure that everyone has access to the behavioral health services they need--regardless of ability to pay.  Click here to make a secure online donation to support the program of your choice through Network for Good.  https://www.networkforgood.org/donation/MakeDonation.aspx?ORGID2=383308516