Oak Ridge Today

Six AC businesses sell beer to minor in sting

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Anderson County Sheriff Patch

During the last two weeks, the Anderson County Sheriff’s Department, in cooperation with the Rocky Top Police Department, the Oliver Springs Police Department, and Allies for Substance Abuse Prevention of Anderson County, or ASAP, conducted compliance checks of local businesses who sell beer.

Investigators with the Sheriff’s Special Operations Unit and officers from the Rocky Top and Oliver Springs Police Departments visited 36 businesses to try to buy beer, a press release said. Six sold beer to the underage person. Four of the six checked for identification but still sold beer to the underage purchaser. Two businesses were closed.

The following businesses sold beer to the underage person:

Al’s Market New River Highway Briceville
Hitching Post Clinton Highway Clinton
Marathon (Fast Track) Lake City Highway Rocky Top
Smokes and Things Clinton Highway Powell
V Night Club North Main Street Rocky Top
Weigel’s Clinton Highway Powell

[Read more…]

Nominations being accepted for Anderson County Ally of the Year

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Submitted

Do you know someone who lives, works, does business, or worships in Anderson County who cares for its citizens and is passionate about creating a healthy and productive Anderson County? Then consider nominating them for Anderson County Ally of the Year.

ASAP’s Anderson County Ally of the Year campaign is a fundraising competition during January, coinciding with the Red Ribbon Rivalry among a select group of individuals in the community. While each candidate conducts their own campaign, all candidates are united by one goal: to use their leadership, influence, and communication skills to raise funds to help prevent and reduce substance abuse in Anderson County.

ASAP (Allies for Substance Abuse Prevention) of Anderson County has made significant reductions in the number of Anderson County students who have used alcohol, tobacco, and marijuana. However, ASAP relies on the generosity of individuals and business to continue these efforts. By accepting the nomination, candidates will have from December 14, 2015, to January 28, 2016, to accumulate the most “votes.” Every dollar raised counts as one vote. The individual who raises the most votes during the campaign will be named the Anderson County Ally of the Year at the Awards Luncheon on January 29, 2016. [Read more…]

Students, state, nonprofit ask students, staff to not text while driving

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ASAP Youth Coalition Oak Ridge Chapter

The ASAP Youth Coalition Oak Ridge chapter encourages students to pledge not to text and drive. (Photo by ASAP) 

 

Oak Ridge High School has teamed up with ASAP of Anderson County and the Tennessee Governor’s Highway Safety Office to host a campaign that asks students, teachers, and staff to pledge to not text and drive.

The campaign is called One Text or Call Could Wreck It All.

April is designated as national Distracted Driving Awareness Month by the Tennessee Governor’s Highway Safety Office. In recognition of that, Oak Ridge High School is taking a stand against texting and driving, a press release said.

The Oak Ridge High School ASAP Youth Coalition hosted the campaign this week along with ASAP of Anderson County, Oak Ridge Schools Coordinated School Health, and the Tennessee Governor’s Highway Safety Office. [Read more…]

ASAP coalition wins award for work to reduce underage drinking

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ASAP Logo

Allies for Substance Abuse Prevention of Anderson County (ASAP) has won a GOT OUTCOMES! Coalition of Excellence award by the Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America, or CADCA. ASAP won in the “Milestones Award” category for their efforts to reduce underage drinking rates in the community, a press release said.

Sponsored by CADCA’s National Coalition Institute, the GOT OUTCOMES! Awards give national recognition to coalitions that make a strong case for their contribution to population-level substance outcomes by using an inclusive, data-driven, and comprehensive community problem-solving process. Coalitions complete a competitive and rigorous two-phase application process and are judged by a panel of experts at the federal, state and local levels.

The Milestone category provides newer coalitions—or those with more recently implemented strategies—the opportunity to highlight their contributions toward achieving community-level reductions in one or more substance abuse or substance abuse-related issues, the press release said. [Read more…]

Nominations being accepted for Anderson County Ally of the Year

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ASAP Logo

Do you know someone who lives, works, does business, or worships in Anderson County who cares for its citizens and is passionate about creating a healthy and productive Anderson County? Then consider nominating them for Anderson County Ally of the Year!

ASAP’s Anderson County Ally of the Year campaign is a fundraising competition during January, coinciding with the Red Ribbon Rivalry among a select group of individuals in the community. While each candidate conducts their own campaign, all candidates are united by one goal: to use their leadership, influence, and communication skills to raise funds to help prevent and reduce substance abuse in Anderson County.

ASAP of Anderson County has made significant reductions in the number of Anderson County students who have used alcohol, tobacco, and marijuana, including a 43 percent reduction during the past two years in the number of students who drink alcohol. However, ASAP relies on the generosity of individuals and business to continue these efforts. [Read more…]

Anderson County partners come together to celebrate tobacco prevention

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Choose Not to Use Tobacco

Kelli Kent, Emma Berry, Reagan Wolfe, Noah Carter, Jake Wade, Sarah Thomas, Hope Hicks, and Courtney Sharp dance as Snow White helps the seven side effects to #ChooseNotToUse tobacco products. (Submitted photo)

 

The Anderson County Health Department and community partners Allies for Substance Abuse Prevention (ASAP) of Anderson County, Anderson County Schools, Clinton City Schools, and Oak Ridge City Schools have made great strides in tobacco prevention since nearly $65,000 was awarded to Anderson County earlier this year.

At the Tobacco Initiative Reception held on Wednesday, October 22, those strides were recognized. Art Miller, director of the Anderson County Health Department, said “this is the first time tobacco settlement funds are being used to fund tobacco prevention.”

More than 40 attendees watched as the ASAP Youth Coalition demonstrated why they “Choose Not To Use” tobacco through a special presentation of a skit they wrote and produced titled “Snow White and the Seven Side Effects.” During the skit, the dangers of tobacco use—such as cigarettes being the leading cause of house fires with more than 7,600 each year in the U.S. and losing teeth after the use of chewing tobacco—were highlighted. [Read more…]

ASAP has strategic planning retreat Monday

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ASAP Logo

For the past four years, Allies for Substance Abuse Prevention, or ASAP, has been funded by the Drug-Free Communities Support Program. This 10-year grant-funded program has provided training, technical assistance, and financial support for the implementation of environmental prevention strategies in Anderson County, a press release said. ASAP has just entered the final year of the first phase of the grant program.

“We have enjoyed automatic renewal of our grant for several years, but we now face competitive renewal for the second five-year term,” the press release said.

The Drug-Free Communities Grant is a highly competitive program, funding a small percentage of applicants each year. To ensure the coalition is prepared with a strong action plan, ASAP invites residents to participate in a strategic planning retreat on Monday, October 27, from noon to 3 p.m. at the Oak Ridge Associated Universities’ main campus at 100 ORAU Way in Oak Ridge. [Read more…]

Five clerks cited after beer ‘sting’ in Anderson County

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Paul White

Paul White

Five businesses in Anderson County sold beer to an underage person during a September 29 “sting,” and five clerks have been cited to court, Sheriff Paul White said Monday.

The Anderson County Sheriff’s Department conducted the sting in cooperation with the Rocky Top Police Department, the Oliver Springs Police Department, and Allies for Substance Abuse Prevention of Anderson County, or ASAP.

Investigators with the Sheriff’s Special Operations Unit visited 20 businesses to try to buy beer during the compliance checks, White said. He said all 20 businesses checked for identification showing the person to be under 21, but five still sold beer to the underage person.

White said the following businesses sold beer to the underage person: [Read more…]

Sponsored: Dunk your insurance agent to help nonprofits

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Dunk Your Insurance Agent

Three local insurance agents are volunteering to get wet in a dunking booth on Saturday to raise money for local nonprofits.

The agents are David A. Vudragovich, Matt Libby, and Melanie Heiberg. The Saturday event is sponsored by Pellissippi Rowing, and and it will be at the Clinton Park behind the ball field from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Besides the dunking booth, it will include food, horse rides, and good community fun, organizers said.

“Buy your tickets from your favorite nonprofit and trade them in for balls to dunk your insurance agent,” organizers said. [Read more…]

Saturday: Household hazardous waste drop-off, prescription drug take-back

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There is a prescription drug take-back in Oak Ridge through 2 p.m. today (Saturday, September 27). There is also a collection of household hazardous waste, and it also ends at 2 p.m.

The prescription drug take-back is at the Oak Ridge Police Department at 200 South Tulane Avenue. The ORPD is doing this in collaboration with the Drug Enforcement Administration Prescription Drug Take-Back Day and Allies for Substance Abuse Prevention (ASAP) of Anderson County.

“The Oak Ridge Police Department will give the public the opportunity to prevent pill abuse and theft by ridding their homes of potentially dangerous expired, unused, and unwanted prescription drugs,” a press release said. “The service is free and anonymous, no questions asked.” [Read more…]

Guest column: Community officials make advances in preventing underage drinking

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By Allies for Substance Abuse Prevention (ASAP) of Anderson County

The Anderson County Underage Drinking Task Force is completing its first year of existence, one which proved to be quite productive.

The Task Force kicked off last September when it assembled key stakeholders from beer boards, law enforcement agencies, government officials, and businesses across different jurisdictions in Anderson County to identify barriers to compliance with underage drinking laws, with a focus on developing local solutions. Over the last year, the Task Force has worked to review alcohol policies of all jurisdictions in Anderson County.

As part of the review process, the Task Force identified a need for consistency throughout the county on alcohol regulations. Through collaborative dialogue, members discovered that many business owners have locations in two or even three different municipalities, each regulated by different rules. [Read more…]

Tuskan honored as SADD National Advisor of the Year

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Mary Tuskan and Julie Strike

Above are Clinton High School counselor Mary Tuskan, left, and Julie Strike, SADD state coordinator for Tennessee.

Mary Tuskan, counselor at Clinton High School, was chosen from a large number of qualified applicants as the SADD National Advisor of the Year, a press release said.

SADD President and Chief Executive Officer Penny Wells said that Tuskan, through her work at Clinton High School, has “exemplified our idea of a successful SADD advisor,” the press release said.

It said Tuskan led the members of the SADD chapter and Allies for Substance Abuse Prevention (ASAP) of Anderson County Youth Coalition to CHS’s repeat victory in this past January’s Red Ribbon Rivalry and continues to support the students in their efforts such as the “Will you stay sober with me?” prom campaign.

Anderson County Director of Schools Larry Foster said: “We were very pleased to hear the news of Ms. Tuskan being named National SADD Advisor of the Year. She is very deserving of such an honor. She has worked extremely hard with our students in Anderson County. Her commitment and dedication to substance abuse prevention is outstanding and she is always giving of her time. Her work is recognized throughout our system and is very much appreciated.” [Read more…]