Healthy Peabody Collaborative to be held Thursday

PEABODY – An inaugural meeting of the Healthy Peabody Collaborative will take place Thursday from 9:30-10:30 a.m. at City Hall. Over 50 area supporters are expected to attend and discuss the growing issue of youth substance abuse in the Leather City.The collaborative was created after the School Committee voted in May to support a $300,000 grant from the Massachusetts Department of Public Health to combat underage drinking and substance abuse. The grant breaks down to $100,000 each year for three years with the chance to renew for up to seven years, totaling $700,000.The grant would require the city to follow two components: developing a strategic plan and changing the environment.The program’s goal is to identify what’s causing Peabody’s “alarming statistics” that place the city well above state averages when it comes to alcohol and drug-related hospital admissions and deaths. In an effort to do so, youth surveys administered through schools would be a highly important aspect, said Peabody Health Director Sharon Cameron.Thursday’s meeting will serve as an information session for all parties involved, including members of the police department, the mayor’s office, the school department, local health clinics and hospitals, Salem State College, the Essex County District Attorney’s Office, social service centers, churches, and local students.”Now, more than ever, Peabody needs your experience, support, and leadership to develop, advance, and promote the protection of the youth in our city,” wrote Mayor Michael Bonfanti in a press release.Cameron said the first meeting is primarily for groups to share and absorb information, whereas future meetings will be more active, working meetings.She said the group will work together on a community needs assessment and through that data, “define the scope of substance abuse issues in Peabody” and develop a strategic plan to attack those issues.Although educational programming is a major aspect of the program, Cameron said environmental changes are equally important.”It’s about changing the environment to make it more difficult for (children) to access alcohol,” she said, adding that the city will work to make restaurants, bars, and retailers more responsible for underage drinking. She said non-commercial access through friends, parents and siblings is also an area of concern they wish to address.”We need to make it more of a part of our culture that it is not acceptable for kids to be drinking,” she said. “Parental attitudes around drinking are really incredibly important. Young people have stated that it’s the number one reason they don’t drink?Parents have much more of an important role than they actually realize.”The first meeting for strategic planning will be held on Thursday, Aug. 14, as the city must submit a plan to the state by October. She expects environmental changes, such as more routine compliance checks twice a year with all liquor retailers, to begin this fall.According to Cameron, Peabody was one of the first communities in the state to be awarded the competitive grant, which has been earmarked for the police department. She believes three main factors contributed to why Peabody was selected over others: critical need, sufficient capacity and infrastructure for community programs, and a strong commitment to change. Lynn, Danvers, Gloucester, Lawrence and Medford were also chosen to participate.