Point Blank students holding cards showing the consequences of "a little party with some friends." Note the "parents" on the left, holding the four cards indicating the number of times they were sued.
Members of the Orcas High School Point Blank Club, a chapter of the Students Against Destructive Decisions, advised by Julie Pinardi, packed the high school gym on Nov. 18 with middle and high school students from OASIS and Orcas Christian Schools, to think about the decisions they make and the risks they take. Point Blank President Jeannie Tran introduced a panel of community workers involved in the consequences of many of those decisions:
- Steve Gresham, the County Prevention Coordinator
- Laura Trevellyan, Domestic Violence/Sexual Assault Services Youth Advocate
- Max Jones, Emergency Medical Technician for the Orcas Fire Department
- Bill Cumming, County Sheriff
- Randy Gaylord, County Prosecutor
- John Linde, Superior Court Judge
- Mike Jennings, County Juvenile Probation Officer
The panel spoke to “raise awareness of the risk in under-age drinking,” from their own perspectives.
Members of Point Blank, about two dozen Orcas High School Students, presented a skit showing that devastating consequences can happen to “good” kids — and parents — who face pressure to make decisions that prove destructive, such as allowing kids to have parties with no adult supervision, backing down when friends drink, and especially driving after drinking.
Point Blank showed the loss of friendships and financial stability, the burden of lawsuits, and the damage to reputations and employment potential, not to mention lifelong physical and emotional consequences.
Advocate Trevellyan spoke to all in attendance saying, “Everyone is learning all the time to set boundaries that make you feel safe. Drinking silences your intuition and brings your defenses down. To have boundaries, you have to stay sober — think about it.”
Sheriff Cumming thanked Point Blank for clearly showing “the issues of peer pressure. You have to rely on and develop a system of values that’s safe for the community. You make decisions to put yourselves and other people at risk when you accept your friends drinking. You are then part of the problem and in fact, saying it’s OK.
“Culture change is a long journey, but I know over time, you as a group are a lot smarter than I was when I was your age. You’re responsible for yourself and your decisions. Think about your own individual behavior.”
Prosecutor Gaylord reinforced Cummings’ words, saying, “Think for yourself. Using drugs or alcohol when you’re young is something you should think about in advance. You only have one chance — [your life] can slip away in just one evening. ”
Judge Linde spoke of the misperception both students and parents have: “‘It’s never going to happen to me.’ Parents put themselves at terrible risk.”
When the assembly was opened up for questions, one student suggested that the financial consequences of prosecution for illegal drinking and drug use may have the reverse effect of causing one to seek relief in drugs and/or alcohol. In his response, Gaylord said, “How people deal with personal and financial difficulties is up to them. I don’t accept that alcohol or drug use relieves stress.”
Several students questioned why marijuana possession and use is illegal, and Gaylord noted that reform of marijuana laws is in process. “We’re at a ‘tipping point’ with strong sentiments on marijuana reform — on local, state and the national level — and I am involved in that reform.”
At the same time, he said that there are “aspects of usage and possession that should continue to be crimes,” which parallel the alcohol laws for underage use, underage supply, and use in public.
