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Home My WebLink AboutCOM 0314.052 1996-1998 411 icenauara sneer Hilo, Hawaii 96720 959-6488 June 16, 1997 ' RECEN® lime-~------ 6y Honorable County Council Members ~7~~/a7.........___ County of Hawaii ~°~-'-°Counry_ Council / Fc 25 Aupuni Street Hilo, HT 96720 Dear Honorable County Council Members: I am writing to you in hopes that you will reconsider applying for the Federal Funds which will enable the eradication of marijuana to continue. I have been working with Drug Prevention Education since 1989 with the Department of Education. Throughout the years all research and studies agree that it is only with combined efforts of everyone in the community that we can win the waz against drugs. Education cannot do it alone. Parents cannot do it alone. The police cannot do it alone. "It takes the whole village to raise the child:' As a community we need to set standards for the children and send the message that the growing and use of marijuana is illegal. This message should be consistent and come from all sectors of the community. Marijuana growing has become an art, especially in these tropical conditions where the plant just flourishes. Growers, or should I say "botanists" have managed to increase the THC content from 1 - 2 percent in the 1970's to potent material up to 15 percent. The records from the Hawaii County Police should be evidence enough to demonstrate the clever efforts of these growers. Eradication of these plants is just one necessary piece of this complex puzzle to drug prevention. As a school teacher, I apply for Federal Drug Free School grants. These grants apply only for prevention, early intervention and after care education programs. These funds are limited and are often cut. Grants of these sort are great to supplement the present curriculum. However, these efforts often fall short because as I have mentioned before, we need to have other sectors of the community to support our efforts. Every agency, every community member need to be part of this effort. I know it can work. Since 1991 I have worked with the D.A.R.E. Program. This program has grown to be the finest in the state. A large part of the growth come from the dedicated D.A.R.E. Officers. Another reason for the success is that we have managed to engage various community groups to be involved in this prevention program. Hawaii County's D.A.R.E. Program consists of the police, educators, o~. » 3 sz >ro. U S.G ~ Praseah~d Fc Itet. JUN 16 t99Z •pazents and businesses all taking a stand. The messages being -ent to the children are consistent. I encourag , ou to take a stand and help with .e prevention efforts. D.A.R.E. is just a tiny, but integral part of drug prevention. The community needs more. I have enclosed information on Marijuana. Please read this to help you make your decision. As you make the right decision for the County of Hawaii think of the following: "As the number one health problem in the country, substance abuse places a major burden on the nation's health caze system and contributes to the high cost of health care. In fact, substance abuse -the problematic use of alcohol, illicit drugs and tobacco - places an enormous burden on American society as a whole. It can harm health, family life, the emnomy and public safety, and it threatens many other aspects of life as well. Substance abuse affects all segments of society, but it disproportionately affects disadvantaged groups and threatens the future of young people." (The Robert Wood Iohnsan Foundation. Substance Abuse: The Nation's Number One Health P .New Iersey:1993) How many more "burdens" can this county continue to have? Choose to continue the use of federal funds for eradication of marijuana. Sincerely, v - Lois M. Wakida Teacher (Note: Attachr_ient to C-314.52 can be found w/Att. "Z" attached to FC 6/16/97 Plinutes)