Catch up with ODP's September Newsletter!

NATIONAL FAMILY DINNER MONTH

Idaho Family Dinner Guide

Eating regular family meals is one of the best ways to build and maintain strong relationships with your children. Frequent family dinners are linked to positive benefits for youth, such as lower rates of substance use and misuse, decreased stress, higher self-esteem, and better academic performance in school. That’s why the Idaho Office of Drug Policy and The Family Dinner Project is encouraging you to celebrate Idaho Family Dinner Night on the fourth Monday of September. Set a goal with your family to have Family Dinner Night once a week!

Teens that eat dinner with their family five times a week are half as likely to use alcohol than those whose families eat together less than twice a week.*

Download your own Idaho Family Dinner Guide by visiting: www.odp.idaho.gov/eat-together-idaho.

Don't forget to Share your family dinner photos with the hashtag #IdahoFamilyDinnerNight

*The Importance of Family Dinners VII, the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University

Family Dinner Night Activity Ideas

Organize a photo contest in your community and encourage families to submit pictures of their family meals!

Use the Guide to Hosting a Community Dinner from The Family Dinner Project to organize a community meal or family dinner night event in your area.

Parent's Corner with Michal Lloyd:

DINNER UGH... LETTING GO OF PERFECTION AND JUST GETTING ‘ER DONE 

Making dinner usually doesn't sound fun. You must remember that the secret ingredient when cooking dinner is ... LOVE. Learn some tricks for fun and success in the kitchen. Cooking with kids can feel challenging, but not when you're intentional about all the steps. Also, do you know what a Pizza Kit is?

Read more here.

IDAHO SUICIDE PREVENTION & NATIONAL RECOVERY MONTH

National Recovery Month is a national observance held every September to educate Americans that substance use treatment and mental health services can enable those with mental and substance use disorders to live healthy and rewarding lives.

National Recovery Month Events:

Finding Hope, Building Resiliency, Supporting Recovery

The week of September 5 - 11, 2021 is National Suicide Prevention Week. Governor Little declared and signed a Proclamation to make September Idaho Suicide Prevention and Recovery Month. The Proclamation encourages education and awareness on reducing stigma in addressing suicide, mental health, and substance misuse and recognize their impact on individuals and communities.

PARTNER RESOURCES

Dialogue for Health: A Community Prevention Webinar Series

This series is brought to you by Drug and Alcohol Trends Education, Cottonwood Police Department, Idaho North Central Public Health, and the Region 2 Behavioral Health Board through a Partnerships for Success Grant from the Idaho Office of Drug Policy.

All Webinars will start at 12 p. m. MST
Credit available through Cottonwood Police Department
Registration – You can register for one or more of these topics at the same registration link. Links to specific webinars will be sent once you have registered. Click here for more information and to register.

ECHO Idaho: Learn, Share, Engage, Connect

Think of ECHO Idaho as a curb-side chat. Every week we offer multiple drop-in sessions over your lunch hour to connect virtually with providers, specialists, and colleagues. Earn free CME/CE at any of these series: Opioid, Pain and Substance Use Disorders; Counseling Techniques for Substance Use Disorders; Hepatitis C; and Perinatal Substance Use Disorder.

Earn your X-Waiver with ECHO Idaho: ECHO Idaho, in conjunction with Providers Clinical Support System (PCSS), is hosting a free x-waiver training on Monday, September 20, 2021, 11:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Pacific time, 12:30-5 p.m. Mountain time. Physicians, NPs, and PAs who want to get their x-waiver to prescribe buprenorphine to more than 30 patients are encouraged to RSVP for this special event. X-waivered providers at FQHCs and RHCs can also apply to earn $3000 for their organizations through HRSA’s Data 2000 Waiver Training Payment Program.

Something for the Pain Podcast: Now you can earn CE/CME on-the-go with ECHO’s new podcast. Something for the Pain brings you the latest trends and best practices in opioid and substance use disorder prevention, treatment, and recovery in Idaho. Available wherever you get your podcasts and on the web: www.uidaho.edu/echo-podcast

GRANTEE SPOTLIGHT

Community Youth in Action (CYA) Idaho Falls embarked on an 11-day service trip from July 22- August 1, 2021. Some often ask why travel with all those teens and spend the time and money to do a trip like that when you can serve at home. We tell them if you could experience the growth and changes in the youth that we see, you would do the same. One participant whose family has had it tough with substance abuse issues expressed how he wants to live a better life than his family and wants to be able to travel, be successful, and be somebody, and that CYA is helping him to get to that point. There is something about building a lasting memory on a trip that cannot be duplicated at home, besides service is something we do together at home weekly so why not do it for others in their community and make a difference in the lives of people we do not know, all while gaining new lifelong memories and having a bunch of fun along the way.

Read the entire article at: https://odp.idaho.gov/grantee-spotlight-community-youth-in-action/

Grantee Information:

Marco Erickson M.S. - Program Director, Marco@cyaidaho.org; (208)241-5665

Community Youth in Action (CYA) Idaho Falls, Idaho

GRANT FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES

NEW Prevention Grant Funding Opportunity NOW OPEN

The Office of Drug Policy (ODP) has received additional federal funds for primary prevention programs and activities across the state. ODP is currently soliciting applications from organizations to assist with the delivery of prevention services related to the COVID-19 pandemic. The goal of the available awards is to provide supplemental funding for strategies and programs to prevent substance misuse and its harmful effects on our youth, families, and communities. Successful applications will include the expansion of current programs OR the initiation of new and innovative projects.

Summary Information:

Application Release Date: August 27, 2021
Application Due Date: September 30, 2021 – 5:00 PM (MST)
Description: The Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriation funding will provide funding to assist eligible public or non-profit entities in preparing for and responding to the coronavirus.
All funded programs MUST have an evidence-based, primary prevention focus.
Anticipated Total Available Funding: $1,300,000.00
There is no minimum or maximum application amount, rather applicants should request adequate funding to implement the proposed project.
Grant Recipients Notified: October 5, 2021
Grant Award Period: The start date may be retroactive to July 1, 2021. All funds must be spent by March 1, 2023, the federal end date for these funds.

Find additional details, application information, and a video application guide at: https://prevention.odp.idaho.gov/coronavirus-response-and-relief-supplemental-appropriations/

ODP UPDATES

Patty Alonzo joined the ODP team as the Program Specialist!

I’m super excited about my new journey with ODP. I was born and raised in Idaho. My family has been in Idaho for over 50 years. I am a mom of three kids, and alcohol and substance abuse are always in the back of my mind. How can I teach my own children to be resilient and push through peer pressure? I often remind them that every choice they make has a consequence, good or bad. Like many parents, I find myself so busy in the daily routine, but because I value my kids, it is essential that I am intentional about engaging and educating them about life situations.

I have previously worked for the Idaho State Department of Education as the Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness Undergraduate Program (GEAR UP) Program Coordinator as well as a Boise State University TRIO Programs Educational Specialist. I worked with over 50 schools in all regions of Idaho. I have partnered with education and community agencies, superintendents, principals, counselors, teachers, parents, and students to help students learn about college and career options after high school. Through that work, I have learned about the needs of schools, students, and parents and worked alongside them to create programming that works for their individual needs. I look forward to working at ODP.

Welcome back, Sharlene Johnson as the

new Partnerships for Success (PFS) Grant Director!

I am thrilled to return to my role as the Partnerships for Success Grant Director for the Office of Drug Policy. I have been in the prevention field since 2008, where I got my start as a community coalition director. I am proud to have been a part of evolving prevention in Idaho into a professionalized field. I received my Certified Prevention Certificate in 2015 and then my Certified Public Manager Certificate in 2020. I’ve gotten involved in many prevention activities and boards, and it has been a gratifying and fulfilling experience. We’re all busy with the things that we decide are priorities for us. If you make a commitment, it instantly becomes a priority, which is the best way to get something started.

I live in Kamiah with my husband Jesse, where we have recently become empty nesters (unless you count the three dogs and the cat). We have two grown sons and six granddaughters. Raising healthy children in Idaho is crucial to me, and I strive to do everything I can to give parents and communities the tools they need to reduce and prevent substance misuse.