 While the Bureau of Land Management and Forest Service have taken it upon themselves to monitor for boonie parties and signs of such activity where illegal drinking and drug use may be occurring outdoors, Inyo Health and Human Services is trying to take a preventative approach with teens and their families by warning of the hazards associated with these kinds of parties and behaviors. File photos By Mike Gervais
Register Staff
6-16-09 Summer is here and local students are out and about, with temptation in abundance and healthy opportunities for socializing and entertainment lacking.
With that in mind, Inyo County’s Health and Human Services Department is working on an educational campaign to keep kids sober and out of trouble this summer.
Through school programs and community workshops, HHS has been trying to reach out to parents and students to raise awareness about the hazards of underage drinking and what kind of penalties youngsters can face if they’re caught drinking at a so-called “boonie party.” These parties take place in the trees by the river or the foothills west or east of town, and usually in front of a bonfire, but out of sight of roads.
According to Health and Human Services Tobacco Control Officer Karen Kong, minors who are caught drinking, especially if they are apprehended for a DUI, can expect to have the infraction on their record for up to 10 years. If they are caught for any other drinking infraction within that 10 years they become a multiple offender.
Before the end of the school year “we did a presentation with alcohol and drug treatment folks and talked about penalties for the students,” Kong said.
That presentation also included talks about the financial costs of underage drinking. Anyone who is caught driving under the influence can expect to pay thousands of dollars in fines, mandatory drinking and driving class fees and raised insurance costs.
“There were a lot of shocked faces about the time aspect and the financial cost,” Kong said. “But we’re trying to treat them more mature, and not just use the scare tactics” – such as the biannual “Every 15 Minutes” program that rotates between Lone Pine and Bishop high schools.
Every 15 Minutes is a staged car accident as a result of underage drinking. Students witness the aftermath of the wreck, where they see injured friends and classmates being loaded into ambulances, life flight helicopters and even a hearse.
That program has seen its successes, but Kong wants to shift the focus to a student’s personal responsibility for their future.
Underage drinking can also affect a student’s future plans for school and job prospects, as residents are required to disclose any felony convictions on college financial aid forms and job applications.
But Kong said it is hard to gauge how well the programs are working by tracking parties on the outskirts of town.
“It’s really hard to gauge because they move around,” Kong said. “The Bureau of Land Management and Forest Service have taken it upon themselves to look for parties and monitor for the makings of a party – pallets and things like that – and report them to law enforcement.”
But, she added, with the help of parents and other community members, the HHS campaign against underage drinking can go much further.
Through education of both parents and students, Kong said the communities of the Eastern Sierra can curb underage drinking.
“We’re in the baby steps of this,” Kong said. “We just want to get people to start thinking about this in a positive way.”
In addition to the school programs for students, HHS is looking at community oriented and individual education that will, hopefully, get parents involved in the dialogue about underage drinking.
“We want to talk to the parents, and get it to trickle down into the family and younger kids, before they’re teenagers,” Kong said.
Kong said she is looking at community meetings held through programs like AYSO soccer and Little League practices, where youngsters and their parents are already gathered.
“We’re looking towards talking about outdoor activities in general, and portraying family outdoor activities as fun and alcohol-free. When you’re fishing, the cooler doesn’t have to be filled with Mike’s Hard Lemonade, it could be filled with regular lemonade,” Kong said.
According to Kong, small moves like that on the part of community members can go a long way to showing youngsters that alcohol doesn’t have to be part of regular activities, and if it starts with elementary and middle school students, it could stay with them through their later teen years, which is ultimately HHS’s goal.
For more information about the program, call 872-4245.
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