By Irena Choi Stern, Publicity Chair, Friends of the Bronxville Public Library

Jan. 31, 2018:  More than 70 community members attended “Hidden in Plain Sight,” an event sponsored by the Friends of the Bronxville Public Library ("FOBPL") on January 9, to learn about the hidden references and paraphernalia that could indicate a teen’s drug or alcohol use.

A replica of a teen’s bedroom was set up on the floor of the Yeager Room at the library, and audience members arrived early to test their knowledge and strengthen their observational skills. The presentation was led by Judy Mezey, assistant director for community-based programs at Student Assistance Services, who was invited to speak by Lillian Neuman, community outreach and prevention education coordinator for The Maxwell Institute.

"By hosting this meeting in the Yeager Room, the Friends of the Bronxville Public Library supports the important work that Maxwell Institute is doing to educate our community on the perils of drug use,” said Margaret Mager, president of the FOBPL. “I personally learned a great deal from Judy Mezey about the signs of drug use by teens. For starters, I had no idea vaping 'flavors' can be toxic. I also learned how dangerous marijuana is when smoked or vaped and that it is over 10X stronger today than it was in the 1980s.” 

When Neuman is out in the community, she often finds that during discussions about alcohol and drugs, parents will say they drank and they’re fine, or they smoked pot when they were a kid and it’s no big deal. “I think that parents have to stop thinking that this pot is the same as when they were smoking pot--it’s not the same,” Neuman said. “These drugs are game changers. They have to realize that it changes the brain, and the younger our kids start, the more damage it does. Parents have to start being aware of this and open to asking questions and talking about it with each other. There is a lot of stigma and shame around this disease, and it keeps people separated and in silos and not talking. They need to have honest conversations with their kids and give them the correct information.”

Mezey hopes that attendees left with the knowledge that

a. Parents have a lot of influence and they should use that influence

b. Underage drinking is not a benign rite of passage

c. Vaping is toxic to teens

d. The marijuana that is being used today is problematic for developing bodies and brains in a way that we’ve never experienced before.

The Community Fund of Bronxville, Eastchester and Tuckahoe provides a grant that supports outreach efforts by The Maxwell Institute, and executive director Amy Korb said, “Judy’s presentation was eye-opening for all and provided great insight for parents as well as practical advice when dealing with drug and alcohol issues. As a parent of a middle and a high schooler, I walked away feeling empowered to have an honest and open conversation with my children.”

“It is very concerning as a parent that our teens can so easily access harmful legal and illegal substances,” Mager said. “We must educate ourselves as parents so that we can have necessary conversations with our children about using substances. The number-one drug prevention tool is engaged parents who talk to their kids about the dangers of drugs so that kids avoid using drugs and alcohol in the first place." 

Pictured here (from top down): A teen’s nightstand can look innocuous until one discovers that various items can hide drug paraphernalia; a replica of a teen’s bedroom was set up on the floor of the Yeager Room at the library, and audience members arrived early to test their knowledge and strengthen their observational skills.  

Photos by Judy Mezey

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