Miami Township Police Chief Sue Madsen, Loveland Superintendent Dr. Amy Crouse, and Loveland Police Chief Sean Rahe presenting at the Right Under Your Nose 2.0 event.
By Johnnie Kanoza,
Great success.
That’s the way participants of the Loveland Educating Against Alcohol & Drugs (LEAAD) Right Under Your Nose (RUYN) 2.0 event described the Sunday, March 11, informational session at Prince of Peace Church. Attended by Loveland parents and members of the surrounding communities, the event was designed as an educational opportunity for adults only, uncoveringthe hidden dangers that students face on a daily basis, including: substance abuse, violence, juvenile crime, technology, and risky behaviors.
The evening was kicked off by hearing a powerful, joint message from Loveland Superintendent Dr. Amy Crouse, Loveland Police Chief Sean Rahe and Miami Township Police Chief Sue Madsen expressing their commitment of locking arms to make our communities safer as we face the drug epidemic through promoting awareness.
RUYN 2.0 educated us on several ways as parents we can help guide and lead our children. In these rapidly changing times where technology has become a key mode of communication, it is important to equip parents with information about what their students have access to. LEAAD Executive Committee Member and Loveland Middle School Assistant Principal Jayson Bruce did an outstanding job on sharing insight about different apps and aspects of social media, coaching parents that conversations with children around the potential dangers of technology and social media are as important as conversations around the dangers of drugs and alcohol.
Loveland School Resource Officer Fred Barnes shared his knowledge on drug paraphernalia and use, along with telltale signs to look for in the bedrooms of our children. The “mock bedroom” display was a great way to bring his message together. Officer Barnes reminded us all the power of simply talking to our children, and even more importantly, always listening and knowing they are looking for guidance.
Speaker Beth Renner shared a powerful, personal story of loss as she talked about her son Zack, who lost his life to addiction. It was a poignant message filled with courage and her hope to impact one life as she continues to share her story.
As the program coordinator of LEAAD, I want to offer a special and sincere thank you to Loveland’s Prince of Peace Church for allowing us to host our event in their beautiful facility, and to all of the community resources that made this such a great evening.
Johnnie Kanoza is the Program Coordinator for Loveland Educating Against Alcohol & Drugs
As we move forward into spring, LEAAD’s mission is to continue leading, educating and promoting awareness about alcohol and drug abuse throughout the Loveland community. We are dedicated to providing the resources and tools to help keep our schools, neighborhoods and surrounding communities safe. Our hope is through events like this we will activate our community to take action, join together and stand united as one.
More details on the event will be located on our LEAAD Facebook page, along with other events we will be participating in.
Our work is just getting started. There are many great things in the works for next school year. Stay tuned!
