notMYkid to hand out drug-test kits in anticipation of 420 (National Get High Day)

A Scottsdale-based national organization is mounting a pre-emptive strike against what is known as 420, or National Get High Day. notMykid  will hand out free drug-test kits to parents on the day before April 20, also known as “National Pot-Smoking Day.”

notMYkid co-founder Debbie Moak says the organization has found that kids who know there is a drug test in their home are empowered to avoid peer-pressure situations because they have a valid excuse: “I can’t, my parents might drug test me.”

Many kids have told her that they don’t want to do drugs, but they “feel so much pressure, like no one in the world is not using,” Moak says. “It makes me angry that parents can take so much of that pressure off their kids and don’t. When it comes to drugs, we [as parents] need to do more than just talk.”

After watching her son go through drug addiction and recovery, Moak, her husband Steve and Mark Rohde, Ph.D., started notMykid in 2000. The organization strives to educate the community, both parents and kids, about the consequences of drug use and other negative behaviors. Although originally only focused on substance abuse, notMYkids now sends young adults to talk to middle and high school students about substance and alcohol abuse as well as eating disorders, depression, self-injury, safe dating, bullying and Internet safety. According to Moak,  speakers reach 100,000 or more Arizona students a year through these school visits.

Parents shouldn’t wait until a crisis to intervene in their child’s life, Moak advises. “Stand up and be pro-active.”

First Check home drug tests will be provided free to parents on Thursday, April 19.

Nine locations nationwide will give out drug tests as part of notMYkid
on 420. The organization expects to hand out 6,000 free drug tests — 1,000 in Arizona alone. All are being donated by First Check.

Kits will be available at notMYkid’s national headquarters, 5230 E. Shea Blvd. #100 in Scottsdale, from 9am to 5 pm. Partner organization Rural/Metro will hand out kits at the Southwest Ambulence Headquarters, 708 W. Baseline Rd. in Mesa, from 7am to 5pm. — Amy Vogelsang

Christ’s Church delivers loads of school supplies to Valley schools

Christ’s Church of the Valley (CCV) finished its “Operation: Support Our Schools” community initiative earlier this month after delivering more than 36,000 reams of copy paper, 15,000 boxes of tissue paper and 6,000 packages of wet wipes to 300 public elementary schools.

Christ's Church of the Valley. Operation: Support our Schools. Photo courtesy of CCV.

CCV celebrated its 30th anniversary by distributing the items to about 11,000 teachers and 300,000 students. The elementary schools that received the items were part of 22 school districts located throughout the Valley.

“Teachers were telling us how often during this time of year they run out of supplies, because the schools are under-resourced, and how they had to purchase some of these items themselves to get through the school year,” said CCV Senior Pastor Don Wilson.

CCV started promoting the program in March to more than 18,000 people and collected the donated items during 10 services on March 24 and 25.

Photo courtesy of CCV.

Founded in 1982, CCV is one church at multiple locations, including campuses in Peoria and Surprise. A third campus will open in Scottsdale this fall. Identical services are provided every weekend at each location. — Erin Saltzman

Youth of the Year chapter winners advance to state competition

Three teens from Valley Boys and Girls Clubs chapters were chosen as Youth of the Year winners to represent their branches at the state-level competition tonight at the U.S. Airways Center. The state winner will advance to the Pacific Region Youth of the Year competition later this year.

Here are the local chapter winners:

Greater Scottsdale

Alyssa Coughenour. Photo courtesy of the Boys & Clubs of Greater Scottsdale.

The Boys and Girls Clubs of Greater Scottsdale awarded Alyssa Coughenour of the Thunderbird Branch as its 2012 Youth of the Year.

The Pinnacle High School senior took home a $5,000 scholarship from General Dynamics C4 Systems and a $1,000 gift card from American Express at the Celebrate Youth Gala and Auction held at Talking Stick Resort. The other runner-ups also received scholarship money and gift cards valued at $500.

Read more about Alyssa here.

Metropolitan Phoenix

Chloe Johnson. Photo courtesy of Nancy Crase.

The Boys and Girls Clubs of Metropolitan Phoenix named Chloe Johnson its Youth of the Year competition.

The St. Mary High School junior credits her 12 years at the MLB All-Star Arizona Diamondbacks Branch for her character and determination to help in her community.

Read more about Chloe here.

East Valley

Adrianna Henderson was named Youth of the Year for the Boys and Girls Clubs of the East Valley.

Adrianna Henderson. Photo courtesy of the Boys & Girls Clubs of the East Valley.

The Horizon Honors High School senior received a $20,000 scholarship, which she hopes to use to pursue her goal of becoming a physical therapist.

Read more about Adrianna here.

— Erin Saltzman

Recycle outdated car seats, for safety’s sake

Phoenix Children’s Hospital will hold its fourth annual Keep Our Planet Neat, Recycle Your Car Seat Demolition event on Friday, April 20.

The event will be held from 7am until noon in the north parking lot at Tempe Marketplace.

“Car seats do a great job protecting children, but at the end of the seat’s life they contain many materials that could be recycled,” says Angelica M. Baker, child safety passenger coordinator at PCH. “Plastic car seats break down over time – especially in the Arizona sun. The harness can actually break through the car seat if a car seat is used past its expiration date.”

Garage sales and trash cans are not the answer to unwanted, old car seats – de-manufacturing and recycling is, says Baker, who reminds parents to never use a car seat that has been in a moderate to severe vehicle crash.

Miss Arizona 2012, Jennifer Sedler, and volunteers will be at the event to dismantle hundreds of car seats. All plastic parts and metal items will be recycled.

PCH also will have trained technicians on hand to conduct free car seat checks. and answer any questions about car seat installations and car seat safety.

Learn more.

April awareness programming

April is sexually transmitted disease (STD), alcohol and distracted driving awareness month and the programming at Know99 Television  reflects these important topics on Thursdays during April, from 8am-4pm.

Know99 is the City of Phoenix’s youth and education cable channel on Cox channel 99.

Kids are in school all day so unless they are watching the programming as part of the school curriculum, set up the DVR or, if you still have one, the VCR, and record a few shows and watch with your child, and then discuss.

Need some hints about talking to your kids about delicate subjects? Some past articles in the magazine may help:

Talking to kids about sex by Lisa Poulin

It’s Simple – Talk to Your Kids About Drugs  by Vicki Balint

An excellent Valley resource for parents is notMYkid.

A night for women’s health

With hors d’oeuvres and a focus on health topics specifically for women, St. Joseph’s Hospital and Medical Center is hosting “Amazing Woman: Be Your Best Self” on Thursday, April 5 from 5 to 8:30 p.m. at U.S. Airways Center.

The “Amazing Woman” event will have six breakout sessions covering all sorts of topics from headaches, healthy weight, and digestion to dealing with stress, being a successful caregiver and the newest hysterectomy treatments.

Keynote speaker is Abby Rike, a former contestant on “The Biggest Loser.” After Rike lost her husband and two children in a car crash in 2006, she decided to search for healing on NBC’s reality show in 2009. Her 2011 book, Working It Out: A Journey of Love, Loss, and Hope, starts with her life before the accident and documents her steps to recovery from traumatic loss.

The event is $15 and parking is free. To register, call ResourceLink at 1-877-602-4111. — Amy Vogelsang

Two good reasons to donate blood

Kellie* experienced symptoms of leukemia in 2004, while she was on a camping trip. She was airlifted to Phoenix Children’s Hospital, where she received transfusions of platelets and red blood cells that sustained her life. The Sunrise Mountain High School student has since strung together “beads of courage” to represent each of the 131 lifesaving blood transfusions she required during her battle against leukemia. Her mom credits blood donors for restoring their hope.

Photo courtesy of Grand Canyon Railroad.

As if that’s not enough incentive to pull out your blood donor card, consider this: United Blood Services is offering blood donors a chance to win one of 60 pairs of tickets to the Grand Canyon when they donate in April or May. Donors will be automatically entered to win the tickets on the Grand Canyon Railway, valued at $150 per pair. The Grand Canyon Railroad’s scenic trip from Williams to the Grand Canyon covers 65 miles of classic Old West territory. The trip takes approximately two hours and 15 minutes one way.

The United Blood Service network is one of the nation’s oldest and largest non-profit blood service organizations. Donors of all types of blood are needed, especially Type O, the universal blood type. For more information or to find a donation center near you, call 877-UBS-HERO (877-827-4376) or visit UnitedBloodServicesAZ.org.

*Last name withheld upon request.