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New
ILCC awareness program on underage drinking to kick off in
Sangamon County
"Don't
Be Sorry" campaign to be unveiled during Prevention Day
2006
DATE:
April 25, 2006
CONTACT: Ted Penesis (tpenesis@revenue.state.il.us)
A new underage drinking awareness/enforcement
program will be unveiled by the Illinois Liquor Control Commission
(ILCC) at this Friday's Prevention Day event at the State
Fairgrounds in Springfield, IL. Over 300 high school students
from throughout Sangamon County will gather in the Illinois
Building from 9am to 2pm to watch students perform skits and
reenactments demonstrating the effects and aftermath of underage
drinking.
"With April being Alcohol Awareness Month and students
preparing to attend prom, the timing of this event could not
be better for introducing 'Don't Be Sorry' to
the general public," says ILCC Industry Education Manager
Ted Penesis of the Liquor Commission's new public education
campaign to reduce underage drinking.
"Our children today are bombarded with messages that
glamorize drinking," he notes. "What these messages
are missing are the facts. Don't Be Sorry will provide these
facts."
"Teens need to know the consequences for the choices
they make. During Prevention Day, students will see some eye-opening
images. Don't Be Sorry will hopefully reinforce
these images in the students' minds."
Gory details aside, Don't Be Sorry will also
focus on how underage drinking affects their everyday lives.
For example, one flier points out that a teen will lose their
driving privileges for 12 months if caught using a fake ID.
"Do teens know that drinking can cost them their freedom?"
Penesis says. "They will once they know the facts."
But it is not only teens who will learn the consequences
of their actions; parents and liquor retailers, too, will
receive tailored messages courtesy of the Don't Be Sorry
campaign. This effort includes a new State of Illinois initiative
aimed at reducing the sale of alcohol to minors.
Entitled TrAIL (Tracking Alcohol in IL), this enforcement
program will hold accountable those who provide alcohol to
teens. Through the program, state investigators will follow
the trail of alcohol when underage alcohol consumption is
suspected in an incident that results in a hospital emergency
room visit.
Sangamon County will serve as a pilot for both of these new
programs. It is expected that TrAIL will expand into
new counties in the upcoming months, with Don't Be Sorry
unveiled statewide this fall.
Other
Industry Education Links:
News Releases
ILCC Newsletters
Illinois
Liquor Control Act
Browse and/or download
Illinois Liquor Control Commission
Rules and Regulations
Browse and/or download
Tobacco Program
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