LIVE SAFE Campaign – Created by Kids for Kids

LIVE SAFE is an alcohol and tobacco prevention awareness campaign to prevent and reduce underage drinking and smoking/vaping.

Alcohol

About 90,000 Americans die each year from alcohol-related causes, making it the country’s third most preventable cause of death.  While national figures show a downward trend in the number of young people who use alcohol, alcohol remains the number one drug of choice for America’s youth and is more likely to kill young people than all illegal drugs combined. 

SAFE’s Life Skills Training (LST) students enrolled in the Glen Cove Youth Bureau’s After 3 program participated in the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s (SAMHSA), 2023 Communities Talk to Prevent Alcohol and Other Drug Misuse initiative to educate communities about the consequences of alcohol and other substance misuse by creating a sustainable logo “LIVE SAFE” that represents the prevention of alcohol misuse and its negative consequences. LIVE SAFE Campaign’s mission is to empower youth against alcohol and substance abuse from any toxic chemical sources that are addictive, unhealthy and effects their maturing bodies and brains. Carol Meschkow-Manager Tobacco Action Coalition of LI lent her technical support on the dangers of toxic chemicals and their addictive properties on the developing brain and concerns over co-dependent behaviors and recreational use.

Under the leadership of Spiro Tsirkas, Glen Cove Youth Bureau Executive Director/ SAFE Coalition’s Youth Committee Chair, and Monica Salinas, SAFE’s LST Program Coordinator, students participated in an art contest to create the logo.  

Tobacco/Vaping

In 2022, 2.55 million U.S. middle and high school students currently used e-cigarettes. Most reported using flavored products, and, among those students, approximately seven of 10 used fruit flavors. Disposable products were the most reported device type. Further, among middle and high school students who used e-cigarettes, approximately four in 10 reported frequent use, and approximately one in four reported daily use. The use of tobacco products in any form, including e-cigarettes, by middle and high school students is unsafe. Sustained implementation of comprehensive tobacco prevention and control strategies at the national, state, and local levels, coupled with FDA regulation and enforcement, is critical to addressing e-cigarette use among middle and high school students. As vaping tobacco and marijuana have become a national trend, and the legalization of marijuana has now exposed the public to secondhand smoke.

Under the leadership of Middle School Health Education teacher Mrs. Sullivan and her colleagues, students participated in the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s (SAMHSA), 2023 Communities Talk to Prevent Alcohol and Other Drug Misuse initiative to educate communities about the consequences of tobacco and vaping by creating a sustainable logo “LIVE SAFE” that represents the prevention of tobacco/vape use, and its negative consequences- especially second hand smoke. LIVE SAFE Campaign’s mission is to empower youth against  any toxic chemical sources that are addictive, unhealthy and effects their maturing bodies and brains. Carol Meschkow-Manager Tobacco Action Coalition of LI lent her technical support on the dangers of toxic chemicals and their addictive properties on the developing brain and concerns over co-dependent behaviors and recreational use.