The School Resource Officers from the Greene County Sheriff’s Department and Greeneville Police Department will present the 3rd “What Your Kids Don’t Want You to Know” parent event tonight at 6:30 p.m. at the Niswonger Performing Arts Center.
The event will address current trends in drugs and social media that are presently being seen in schools in Greeneville/Greene County. One thing often heard from parents when their child has problems in school is “I wish I would have known about this or what to look for.” Information gained from this event will answer that question along with providing information about other issues kids face today in school.
The event is open to all parents/guardians of public, private, and home school students. The event is free and open to the public. This event is in its 3rd year, and the steering committee is pleased to welcome Phil and Marie Lilja as keynote speakers this year. Phil and Marie will share their story of their own two children, who lost their lives to overdose. Mr. and Mrs. Lilja said, “We are looking forward to sharing our story of our two sons that died from an overdose, so hopefully, no other child or parent have to go through what we do on a daily basis.
“Apex Bank is sponsoring the event for the third year. “On behalf of Apex Bank and our eight branches in the East TN region, it is an honor to partner with these great organizations once again to educate our community on the subject of drug abuse and social media trends and the negative impact they have on our young people,” stated Tammy Kinser, Greene County Market President with Apex Bank.
Juvenile Judge Ken Bailey will also address the audience. “Our kids and families today face enormous challenges on a daily basis. Social media, drugs, alcohol, vaping, anxiety, and teenage depression are just a few of the challenges that all families must deal with-no family is immune. Many parents, grandparents, and other caregivers do no fully understand these challenges or do now know who to turn to when these issues arise. Hopefully, this community forum can provide tips and suggestions of what to do and who to turn to. There is no easy answer, and these issues are not solved overnight.
Additionally, families and caregivers need to know that they are not alone in confronting these issues-and that we can’t simply throw our hands up and “give up.” Our kids need us now more than ever before in our society. I hope that you will join us at the very informative event as we hear from School Resource Officers, therapists, parents, and others in our community about these issues that impact all of us.”
The Greene County Anti-Drug Coalition is grateful for the opportunity to be included in “What your Kids Don’t Want You to Know” event. David Varney stated, “Our goal is to prevent the initiation of substance abuse. The information being presented gives parents, grandparents, and guardians the tools and information necessary to have the difficult conversations with their school age kids. Knowledge is power and the dangers of substance abuse is just too great to not be talked about.”
Frontier Health will also be available to assist with mental health needs. “Frontier Health is honored to continue partnering with other resources in our community,” stated Jaime Weems with Frontier Health – Nolachuckey-Holston Area Mental Health Center. “Our goal in participating in the event is to provide information to parents, if there are any questions or concerns with their student. We hope to bring awareness about mental health in Greeneville and Greene County and reassure parents that there are people in our schools that want to help their student succeed and be healthy.
We are thankful that both school systems allow us to partner with them and have School Based Services. We will be providing contact information for each of our school’s therapists at this event; however, if there are any questions or concerns, please reach out to Nolachuckey Mental Health at 423-639-1104.”
The Greene County Sherriff’s Department and the Greeneville Police Department would like to thank the Greene County Anti-Drug Coalition, United Way of Greeneville/Greene County, Strong Futures, and the many other groups and organizations that have provided help in making the event happen.
For more information on this event, please contact Sgt. Bryan Henderson, GCSD at (423) 444-2412 or Sgt. Gina Holt, GPD at 423-278-6043. The event is also available through livestream at https://gcsvideo.gcschools.net/View.aspx?e=GHSLIVE.
