Prose & Comments: Sticker campaign — Don’t buy alcohol for minors

BY JANINE MAHONEY

Communities That Care (CTC) is teaming up with Shelter Island student members from LITI (Long Island Teen Institute, otherwise known as HUGS) to change adult attitudes about selling and providing alcohol to minors, at businesses on Shelter Island.

“Sticker Shock” is an effort to reach adults who may be tempted to purchase alcohol for youths under 21 who can’t buy it legally themselves. The bright yellow and black stickers, due to be applied this Friday, stand out on multi-packs of alcohol and glass refrigerator doors for all to see, and provide a strong reminder: Providing alcohol to minors is illegal, unhealthy and unacceptable!

Adults need to set a better example for kids. When adults supply alcohol to youths, it sends a mixed message. Underage drinking is not a teen problem, it is a community problem. Adults, youth, law enforcement and retail stores all need to be part of the solution. CTC recognizes the cooperation of Island businesses for their desire to manage the sale of alcohol and their willingness to participate readily.

“A strong community message is sent when our businesses take responsibility for speaking out against underage drinking,” said CTC Coordinator Marilyn Pysher. Shelter Island Town Police Officer Walter Richards offers a timely message. “Allowing minors to consume alcohol in your home, or any place under your control, carries many of the same penalties under the law as furnishing, even if you do not supply the alcohol,” he reminds parents. “This season is a particularly high-risk time of year, but we don’t want people to forget that providing alcohol to minors, or allowing them to drink in a place under your control, is against the law all year round.”

Youth leaders from LITI, adults from CTC, and local retailers are working together to create a safer and healthier lifestyle by combating the problem of underage drinking. Alcohol has been the number-one choice of illegal substances used by Island youth, and according to recent surveys, is the easiest to obtain. The Sticker Shock campaign is intended to make adults think twice before making it any easier for youths to access alcohol.