Scituate FACTS prides itself as “a coalition developed in an effort to reduce teen drinking and underage substance abuse.” This mission statement, which is plastered on the FACTS website, acts as the constant reminder of their ultimate goal. The current target for Anne Marie Galvin and Barbara Quinlan, two Scituate FACTS leaders, is to get students involved in order to positively impact all teens.

On September 29th, Scituate Public School students from Gates Intermediate School and the high school went with Mrs. Galvin to the 6th Annual Underage Drinking & Substance Use Prevention Conference in Rockland, MA. The conference was a one-day event sponsored by the South Shore Health System’s Youth Health Connection, where students, recovering addicts, doctors, and community members joined to discuss accomplishments and ideas surrounding the ongoing issue of drug and alcohol addiction.

I was invited onto the group of Scituate student representatives attending the conference, specifically from the high school’s athletic teams as captain of the field hockey team, along with one of the captains of the boy’s soccer team, David Murray. Through listening to the guest speakers, learning shocking statistics, and discussing issues with students from other high schools across Massachusetts, I learned just how important it is for students to understand the effects of alcohol and drug use at a young age. 90% of alcoholics and drug addicts start drinking or smoking before the age of 18. FACTS is working hard to get teenagers and students involved with the Youth Advisory Subcommittee where facts like this are discussed.

The Youth Advisory Subcommittee also strives to organize and plan more events to give students an alternative to substance use. Past events include  the Poetry Slam, which occurred at the GAR Hall in Scituate on December 2nd. A Trivia Night is also planned for high school students on Thursday, November 10th, 7:30-9:30 p.m., at St. Mary’s Parish Center. Quinlan, who is working hard to spread knowledge of these upcoming events, says, “There is a lot of great stuff happening in Scituate. I think that it just has to get mentioned everywhere possible!” Help Mrs. Quinlan and all of the Scituate community in changing the statistics.