It’s against the law.

A public awareness program educating communities and parents about the health and safety risks of serving alcohol at teen parties.

‘Tis the Season… for Graduation parties, summer get-togethers, relaxing camping weekends, and more. During these celebratory and relaxing times, we may also relax our guard a bit. It’s normal. We don’t want to always be the one saying “No.” As the adult host, we might tell ourselves to lighten up, that since we’re in charge nothing could possibly go wrong.

This phenomenon reminds me of when I was a teen and quickly learned the key to an enjoyable out-to-dinner-with-the-family event. My dad, when taking the family to dinner without any outsiders, was one of the grumpiest people on the planet. He told us what we could order and would get upset if we had the audacity to suggest that we really didn’t want the liver and onions just because it was the cheapest thing on the menu. In contrast to that, if one of us had invited a friend, my dad turned into the ultimate host—Mr. Congeniality. Everyone was able to order what they wanted, and dad told jokes throughout the course of the meal—lame jokes, for the most part, but that’s what dad’s do, right? He loved throwing parties and being the host…it made him happy.

The reality of the situation is that if you are the host and underage guests consume alcohol, you are the responsible party. Things just went from fun and relaxing to potential legal consequences. Drinking laws are in place for a reason, whether you agree with the laws or not, you are still subject to them. The bottom line is that teens don’t process liquor in quite the same way that adults do. It causes more damage faster. And teens, especially those who have been drinking, lack judgement as to what is “enough”.

The Parents Who Host, Lose The Most program was started in 2000 and it has been requested for replication in all 50 states, Canada, the Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico. And each year I see more and more stories about police cracking down and prosecuting the party hosts. So ask yourself whether it is worth it.

A Public Service Announcement from
Parents Who Host, Lose The Most: Don’t be a party to teenage drinking

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This is hard. I’m struggling to find the words I want to say.

In July, after reading about Samuel and Takeimi, I couldn’t stop thinking about them. So I googled a few things and found out that Samuel and Takeimi are not alone. One story led to another. More than five thousand teenagers die every year because of alcohol in some way. That’s too many.

I felt like I needed to do something because thinking about Samuel and Takeimi would bring me to tears. It’s just so sad. Sarah told me it’s because Daddy’s death is still so close to me. I miss him so much it hurts, but my tears were for Takeimi and Samuel and all the others for the things that will never be, the things they’ll never get to do.

They only live on in memories. I never knew any of them personally, but through reading their stories, I feel like I carry a little piece of them in me. I have to stop now, or I’ll start bawling again. Please watch the video and remember.

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A couple of weeks ago Takeimi Rao was looking forward to starting high school, or at least that’s what I’d expect from a straight A student. But last week, during a slumber party all her dreams of what she was going to do with her life came to an end. She had three friends spending the night, and they decided to sneak some vodka and spike their sodas with it. I understand. I really do. They probably giggled as they poured the vodka into their drinks, because of the thrill of sneaking it. They were being daring, but “safe” because they were at Takeimi’s house. What could go wrong?

Three of the girls got sick, and Takeimi died. I’m sure she didn’t want to. She probably didn’t even know it could happen. She was only fourteen-years-old. The same age as me.

I’m not gonna lie…I’m no angel. I made the same mistake Takeimi did — not exactly the same, but close enough. From what I’ve read, Takeimi didn’t have a drinking problem, she was considered a “good girl”. In fact, she reminds me of my friend Jewelz in a way. She was outgoing, social, and loved music and theater, just like Jewelz.

The school and police keep saying that hopefully Takeimi’s death will cause parents to talk with their kids about how dangerous alcohol is. Especially for kids my age and younger. Daddy used to talk to me about drinking and why I shouldn’t do it. But I did anyway. Because even though I listened to his words, I didn’t really hear them. Not in a way that matters anyway. I thought he was just trying to scare me by exaggerating how dangerous it is.

Even after Tim and I burned down a shed, it didn’t click that if we hadn’t been drinking or smoking it wouldn’t have happened. It was just an accident. Maybe parents need to find examples like Takeimi and Samuel, kids just like us, and talk about what happened and why they’re afraid it might happen to us. I know their stories have hit home with me, and maybe I’ll remember the next time I’m tempted to take a drink.

It might not end so well.

And I’ll bet the kids who went to school with Takeimi won’t forget what happened to her. Would you?

The post Takeimi’s Legacy appeared first on Be the Cat.

This is a picture of Samuel Hayes. He died last week, probably because he had too much to drink. He was sixteen-years-old, only a couple years older than me. I didn’t know Samuel. We don’t live in the same town, but his story hit me hard. He looks like a nice guy, and sixteen is too young to die.

Samuel drowned in a river, and when they did the autopsy on him, his blood alcohol level (BAC) was 0.27!!! Apparently someone bought him some whiskey and it would take about 10 drinks to make his blood alcohol level that high. That’s a lot of whiskey. All I know is after the graduation ceremony at his school, he was given a half-gallon of whiskey and wound up dead.

I think why this story hit me so hard is that it could have been me. Tim and I got lucky when we tried drinking. He took some of his dad’s rum and we nearly burned Mr. Pickford’s shed down. It could have been so much worse. We both lived, and the shed didn’t burn out of control. It was still scary though.

I think another reason why I really feel for Samuel is that he drowned in a river. And having nearly drowned after Harvey left me blindfolded, gagged, and bound in a river, I wonder if Samuel panicked like I did. Or whether he was too drunk to know that he was drowning. I hope in a way he didn’t know. Those moments in the river will stay with me forever. It was awful, and I don’t like to think of him going through the same thing.

Sixteen is too young to die. There was too much ahead for him that he now won’t do. Something for us all to think about.

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