I congratulate the staff members and the volunteers of Community in Crisis (CiC) for their good work in prevention, as the organization recently received a Blue Ribbon Award from the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) for its outstanding work to prevent youth substance use and ensure young people can lead healthy and fulfilling lives. Located in Bernardsville, the organization provides a variety of programs and services promoting prevention, treatment and recovery. The award was presented at the National Youth Prevention Summit in Washington D.C. “Drug-Free Community Coalitions are an essential part of our whole-of-society efforts to address the overdose epidemic and save lives,” said ONDCP Director Dr. Rahul Gupta. Also present at the award ceremony was Fiona Vitali, a junior from Bernardsville High School, who has taken a leadership role in CiC’s Youth Leadership Council. Empowering our young people to take an active part in programs promoting prevention is an essential component to doing quality work on the community level.

PDFNJ has several school-based programs to promote prevention. Middle school students can now participate in our Middle School PSA Video Contest, and high school students are invited to take part in PDFNJ’s music competition, Your Song! Your Voice! Shout Down Drugs New Jersey. Prizes are awarded to contest winners.