FLOBEL ADVISOR MARIE SHULTIS AND AWARENESS INC.
FLOBEL Advisor Marie Shultis is one of the mentoring adults of the Ulster County based NGO, AWARENESS Inc. AWARENESS is a teen initiated program with adult guidance that provides students with opportunities to think critically about substance abuse. In the beginning stages of the organization high school students ages 16 – 18 years old met at a youth center and college students and 18-21 year olds met at SUNY New Paltz’s Campus AWARENESS Club formed in 2011. In these forums students brainstorm about how to expand and teach more youth about substance use, abuse and addiction.
The unique peer to peer program of AWARENESS Inc. helps young people to determine what they should and should not do in the face of mood altering substances. “90% of youth in 2014/2015 program identified a need to change their behavior” after completing the 8-week program. AWARENESS utilizes the power of group activity and team bonding as a method for participants to identify their own issues and ultimately begin the process of behavioral change. Marie Shultis, adult mentor and supporter of the NGO sat down with Nectar News to discuss the mission and growth of the program in a special Nectar Publications interview.
NN: What inspired the development of the NGO and your work with young people who are struggling with substance abuse?
MS: First an underage drinking party that my 16 year old daughter had when we were away (she stayed behind because of her first job) in 2006 when we were away on a Monday night that was my brother who had past aways birthday. The police called my husbands cell phone and told them their were over 50 drunk kids are our house and more alcohol then they’d seen, what should they do? We told them to block our driveway and call the parents to come get their drunk children. After the party we heard from many parents,”What’s the worst thing that could happen if you just let them all stay at your house ?Through this I learned that when kids are ticketed for underage drinking they were just given a fine, many of which parents came and paid without their children in attendance because there was an absence of an alcohol awareness program that was supposed to be in existence for Judges to use as part of the sentence to help educate youth. I reached out to a local attorney and Judge to help me figure out what could be done.
This inspired us to start a mentoring program, I hired a girl who was a Senior in High School and had received her 2nd drinking ticket in an attempt to break the underage drinking cycle before my son, then in 5th grade got to the high school. Fifteen high school students mentored 30 middle school students. The following May 2007 on my daughters prom night one of the parents hosted the after prom party and three kids drove away and crashed, one died, the driver went from prom to prison. After attending a candle light vigil on the lawn of the boy who died, his Dad came out and spoke to the kids, “This has got to stop, it’s got to start now, and it has to come from you because you don’t listen to us adults.” The Mentors came to me and asked to do something to help warn others so this didn’t happen. Having lost my brother and knowing the horrible feeling to lose the closest person in my life they introduced me to the driver and we started to meet and created a DVD of videos including one from the boy in prison who couldn’t remember the events leading up to driving, but had a clear plan to sleep at the house that night. We inadvertently created a program that fit,” the Alcohol Awareness Program”.
NN: How can the community help you in furthering your mission?
MS: We need support in many ways, our website needs updating, marketing materials, spreading the word about us. We have been the best kept secret in Ulster County.
NN: How do you feel teenagers benefit from the program? In what ways is your program unique?
MS: Ages 16 to 24 benefit by getting a chance to be open and honest without being judged. It’s perhaps the only venue they get for this. Since there is no one telling them what to do it allows them to reflect on how their behavior is impacting them. We hear from many of them, “this doesn’t feel like a punishment”, because it’s not. “It has been a successful and a proven program in our court,” stated by New Paltz ADA John Rusk and the unique thing about our program is it is peer led.
NN: How long can a student participate in the AWARENESS program? Do they age out of the curriculum or is AWARENESS more of a life long culture that each participant adopts. Have you had any graduates that have come back to assist you in furthering the mission?
MS: We have weekly meetings year round. It has been used as an alternative to probation so they can attend an entire year. It can be a life long culture as many youth who came in high school still keep and touch while in college and after. Yes, many of the participants come and volunteer after they finish. We also have volunteers and past participants that are working in a career or getting their Masters degrees and still reach out.
NN:What do you believe is the most essential element of your work with youth? Out of all of the wonderful benefits your program offers what is priority when communicating with the kids?
MS: The most essential element where I am concerned is trust and knowing that I am helping them, because I care. The peer delivery is also a huge essential element that I believe is the key to our 90% success rate in getting youth to identify a need to change their behavior. A priority is getting them to be able to hear from peers who have become addicted to heroin and landed in jail or prison who explain to them how quickly alcohol and marijuana can lead to pills and heroin.
NN: Where are your programs currently administered?
MS: We have been used in the New Paltz area since 2009. We have an after school program and meet at a church for college and youth out of high school. We recently started two Recovery Groups one in Woodstock at the Christ Lutheran Church and one in uptown Kingston at the Old Dutch Church. We saw a need to help youth who are coming out of detox, rehab and jail and have young people in recovery who will help guide them. We help them learn strategies to stay sober, create a sober network, support them with resumes, jobs and offer to accompany them to AA or NA meetings. We are still new and are open to helping with any needs, finding and enrolling in rehab. Many don’t feel like they fit in when they first attend AA or NA by having someone in recovery go with them we can help them find their niche group(s) to be successful.
Awareness Inc. is a non punitive, non judgmental educational program to keep adolescents informed about the dangers of substance abuse and the negative consequences that can result from decisions made under the influence. The organization helps youth identify addiction and allows youth in their recovery to share their experience and support. To learn more about the organization visit their website and social media pages.
