Prevention Services
The Prevention Services Department of Oak Park Township works to enhance the quality of life in the community. We provide support through education and raising awareness to many of the physical and mental health challenges facing youth and their families with a focus on reducing underage drinking and substance abuse. As a way to educate and bring awareness of these issues, we offer many resources and programs within the community.
Contact Information
Kelly O’Connor
Prevention Services Manager
koconnor@oakparktownship.org
Amanda Stephans
Strategic Prevention Framework
Partnerships for Success Assistant Coordinator
astephans@oakparktownship.org
105 S. Oak Park Avenue
Oak Park, IL 60302
708-383-8005
April is Alcohol Awareness Month
+PYD & ART are raising awareness of underage drinking and supporting a healthy lifestyle in recovery! Please join us! This interactive map has a 7-mile bike lane-friendly route throughout Oak Park and River Forest. For those that want to get out and about and take a ride! Stationary bikes and spin class count too! Participation is welcome. Don't forget to log your miles! You can also participate in the many events and educational resources we have in our virtual activities calendar for the month!
Interested in a Bike Meet-Up? Stop by National Prescription Take Back Day on Saturday, April 24, 2021, at 1 pm! Melinda Holm & Associates graciously donated and will be giving out Bike Light kits. Ride on over and take a spin for those interested in riding together. Bike light quantities are limited. Thank you! Don't forget to bring your unused/unwanted Rx to drop off too! Location: Oak Park Township, 105 S. Oak Park Ave., Oak Park, IL 60302
The Rx Abuse Leadership Initiative (RALI) of Illinois is an alliance of local, state, and national organizations committed to finding a solution to the opioid crisis. RALI has generously donated Deterra Drug Deactivation Kits for our April National Prescription Take Back Day held Saturday, April 24, 2021, from 10-2 pm at Oak Park Township, 105 S. Oak Park Ave. For more information visit their website at https://www.rali-il.org. Questions: email koconnor@oakparktownship.org
2021 +PYD Calendar
Have you picked up your FREE set of conversation cards yet!?
If not, please stop by Oak Park Township (please call ahead) or River Community Center to pick up your set today!
Both facilities are open from 9am-5pm, Monday-Friday.
We hope these cards can help to facilitate an open and honest conversation with your youth while having fun as a Family.
If you would like a free substance use/mental health assessment or would like additional information please contact Amanda Stephans and we will be happy to assist.
For more information please visit the following websites for some talking tips and resources:
Tips for Teens | www.samhsa.gov
Brochures and Fact Sheets | www.niaaa.nih.gov
Resources for Parents | https://rosecrance.org/
Fact Sheets | https://www.nami.org/NAMI/
Community Coalition
The workgroup for Positive Youth Development (+PYD) uses the Strategic Prevention Framework. Our mission and vision is to provide practical insight and guidance to support youth in making choices that lead to alcohol and drug free lives.
For more information or to get involved, contact us at: koconnor@oakparktownship.org or 708-383-8005, ext. 125.
Why a Coalition?
Being a Good Friend
Education and Support Groups
Video coming soon!
Prevention Programs & Workshops
FACE-IT
(Families Acting Collaboratively to Educate and Involve Teens)
FACE-IT is a family-focused alcohol, tobacco, and other drug education, prevention, and early intervention program for youth and their parents or caregivers.
Virtual classes held every Thursday evening from 6-8pm. Working together as a family boosts bonding and increases protective factors. Youth say parents are the number one reason why they choose not to use drugs and alcohol. FACE IT is an early intervention and prevention program for middle and high school students and their caregivers. For more information please contact; koconnor@oakparktownship.org or call 708.383.8005 ext.125.
Health Connection Hub (The HUB):
The HUB is a closed-loop referral database that helps connect community members to the behavioral health and other social services that they need. Learn more and search for services at www.healthconnectionhub.org
Help & Hope by Text: Click this link for the website.
Parents and caregivers can sign up to receive tailored resources and skills delivered via text message.
How it works:
1. Text ‘JOIN’ to 55753
2. Answer a quick series of questions about your child and their substance use.
3. Receive messages with information and support specific to your family’s needs.
Partnership for Drug-Free Kids - Online support for Parents and Caregivers: Click this link for the website.
Out of Reach(Prescription Medication Education for Adults)
COVID-19, Cannabis, and Vaping
There Are No Current Treatments or Cures for the Coronavirus
The Federal Trade Commission warned “There currently are no vaccines, pills, potions, lotions, lozenges or other prescription or over-the-counter products available to treat/cure #coronavirus (#COVID19). Coronavirus-related ad claims will be subject to exacting scrutiny.”
Potential Increased Risk of COVID-19 Due to Smoking or Vaping
NIDA concludes: “We can make educated guesses based on past experience that people with compromised health due to smoking or vaping and people with opioid, methamphetamine, cannabis, and other substance use disorders could find themselves at increased risk of COVID-19 and its more serious complications—for multiple physiological and social/environmental reasons. The research community should thus be alert to associations between COVID-19 case severity/mortality and substance use, smoking or vaping history, and smoking- or vaping-related lung disease.”
What’s Legal and What’s Not – Know the Rules
Wondering what’s allowed in Illinois? Some of the rules for cannabis are similar to the ones for alcohol, but there are also rules just for cannabis. Find out how to make safe and responsible choices and stay out of legal trouble.
Using Cannabis: What You Need to Know
How strong is cannabis? Cannabis is stronger than it used to be because today’s plants contain higher amounts of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). Make sure you understand the health effects of cannabis on your mind and body, how to be safe, and the impacts of underage use.
Video by Chicago Police Outline What’s Legal and Not Regarding the Recreational Marijuana Law
Starting Jan. 1, 2020, Illinois will allow the purchase, transportation and consumption of cannabis by adults 21 and older. And police want to make sure residents are prepared — and know what they can and can't do when it comes to legal weed.
Vapes, E-cigarettes, and other Electronic Delivery Systems (nicotine, marijuana, other drugs)
Vapes, vaporizers, vape pens, hookah pens, electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes or e-cigs), and e-pipes are some of the many terms used to describe electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS). ENDS are noncombustible tobacco products.
Cannabis, social media, and our teens
The American legal cannabis market is set to surpass $12 billion by the end of 2019. But as states legalize non-medical marijuana, they are facing regulation challenges quite different from the early days of alcohol and tobacco marketing: Social media allows cannabis brands to reach a new level of engagement and interaction with youth.
Marijuana Edibles Fact Sheet
Edible marijuana is very different - and more dangerous - than joints and other marijuana products.
Smart Approaches to Marijuana
Smart Approaches to Marijuana (SAM) is an alliance of organizations and individuals dedicated to a health-first approach to marijuana policy. We are professionals working in mental health and public health. We are bipartisan. We are medical doctors, lawmakers, treatment providers, preventionists, teachers, law enforcement officers and others who seek a middle road between incarceration and legalization. Our commonsense, third-way approach to marijuana policy is based on reputable science and sound principles of public health and safety.
Marijuana Facts for Teens
People smoke marijuana for a lot of different reasons: to feel good, to feel better, to feel different, or to fit in. Whatever the reason, drug use has consequences.
Talk Saves LivesTM: An Introduction to Suicide Prevention
A community-based presentation that covers the general scope of suicide, the research on prevention, and what people can do to fight suicide.
Attendees will learn the risk and warning signs of suicide, and how together, we can help prevent it.
Teens and Mental Health (translation in Spanish available for audio)
Adolescence isn’t an easy time for parents, either. As children move through the various tumultuous transitions that accompany adolescence — physical, emotional, hormonal, sexual, social, intellectual — the pressures and problems they encounter can all too easily seem overwhelming. For many teenagers, these and other pressures can lead to one or more of a variety of mental health disorders; all are matters of concern, and some are life-threatening.
Free Screenings
SBIRT
CRAFFT
Mental Health and Suicide Screenings
Newsroom
Oak Park and River Forest Townships Marijuana Town Hall Meeting
Nearly All Oak Park & All River Forest Businesses Pass Underage Alcohol Sales Test
Local Group Conducts a Blitz Against Underage Drinking
