~Don Cheadle

All across our state, dedicated youth and adults are working through Healthy Maine Partnerships (HMPs) to educate their communities and create environmental & policy change to help us all live healthier lives. Youth Advocacy Programs (YAPs) are an essential part of these programs, and HMPs are leaders in engaging young people as partners in community change efforts.

We are hoping that ALL groups who want to get or stay connected, even those who have participated at MYAN events in the past, will fill out our Join the Network survey (if they haven't already) so we can update contact information and learn more about what you care about and what you need.

In the time that I have worked with Healthy Maine Partnerships (HMP), I have found that youth involvement is really important to their overall process for anything that needs to be accomplished. There are many topics that HMPs cover, including physical activity, nutrition, tobacco awareness, and now underage drinking prevention as well. Different HMP groups have various objectives, which usually are more successful with youth involved. Through youth-adult partnerships HMPs have accomplished changes such as smoke-free park ordinances, healthier lunch programs, and indoor wellness groups.

Often adult groups think youth are not essential in the overall goal of their initiative. HMPs use a unique way of bringing youth in through their Youth Advocacy Programs (YAPs) to achieve heights others haven't gained. Youth ultimately can have a great amount of say about what happens in their communities.

When trying to reach young people to inform them about an issue, it is best to involve people their age. It is more likely that the young people who you are targeting will listen to their peers rather than adults. On issues that are about young people adults are more likely to listen to young people's opinions, too, since that's who they are trying to serve.

As a youth who has worked with an HMP for the past four years (the River Valley Healthy Community Coalition), I understand that youth have a big part in any process of making their community better. Youth have so much power behind the voice they express. In my opinion, Healthy Maine Partnerships have a great thing going for youth and adults within the state of Maine. Other states should take this as an example and implement something similar. Youth are the solution, not the problem.

Below are some resources to help you get connected to your local Health Maine Partnership, and get involved with environmental and policy change activities in the areas of tobacco use prevention and treatment, substance abuse prevention, and physical activity & nutrition promotion. 

• Find the HMP in your area on the Healthy Maine Partnerships website.
  
  
• The Youth Activity Resource Guide is full full of helpful contact information, tools and activity ideas that all kinds of groups can use! This document was created to help HMPs engage young people as partners in reaching their environmental and policy change objectives.
  
  
• Connect your HMP to Global Youth Service Day, the largest service event in the world! This year's event will be April 25-27. Get planning toolkits, posters, guides, sample media releases and much more on the Youth Service America's website!

• Union River Healthy Communities' My Choice Chem Free Club at Sumner Memorial High School in Sumner has been busy, hosting informational tables for the Great American Smokeout and the governors Drug Awareness Week, sending students to Maine's Tobacco Report Card press conference in Augusta, and submitting student stories to the American Lung Association website. They are grateful for the support of their principal, Michael Eastman. Contact Jan Dodge at dodge@mail.sumner.k12.me.us to get learn more about My Choice Chem Free.
  
  
• The Healthy Peninsula Project's Looking Out For Teens (LOFT) group of Deer Isle-Stonington writes a regular column in the high school newsletter that goes to all students and faculty, and are in the process of creating a film trailer about substance abuse that will be shown as a public service announcement this summer for all movies at the Stonington Opera House. Also, all youth at the Blue Hill Consolidated School participated in a day long tobacco awareness event this winter featuring "The Breathing Game", which illustrates what breathing would feel like if a person smoked. FMI about these projects, contact Jane Freeman, jfreeman@healthypeninsula.org.
  
  
• Access Health's YAP group at Freeport High School, We Organize Wellness Wednesdays (WOWW), are the first high school to receive a grant through the Let's Go initiative.  WOWW is using the grant to bring a wide range of presenters to the school, such as singing bowls in a Peace Garden, a healthy breakfast presentation from Hannaford complete with breakfast cookies and smoothies to sample, and relaxation with Kimberly Rowe of Five Seeds. Contact Heather Van Dam at hvandam@midcoasthealth.com to get connected with WOWW.
  
  
• Communities Promoting Health has collaborated with the Builder's Club from the Scarborough Middle School to pilot a pedometer program, through which over 100 youth are "Walking Across America."  Participants log their steps every week, and the Builders Club marks how far the school has walked together on a large map. They are building excitement through announcements to mark milestones, planning teacher challenge days, and organizing a night where the kids can walk/dance to music and enjoy water and snack while they add steps on their pedometers. Contact Ashley Bracy at abracy@propeople.org to get ideas for starting your own pedometer program.
  
  
• Katahdin Area Partnership sent representatives to the Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America (CADCA) Forum in Washington D.C. Read about how youth representative Mikala Thompson is bringing what inspired her back to Maine!
  
  
• Communities Promoting Health YAP group at South Portland's Brick Hill Cottages organized a community "Snow Adventure Day" to encourage winter physical activity such as sledding, snow shoeing, and outdoor games. They also incorporated an educational anti-tobacco demonstration. Contact Ashley Bracy at abracy@propeople.org to find out more about the Snow Adventure Day.
  
  
• Healthy Coastal Communities Coalition's YAP group at Bonney Eagle High School is bringing great energy & creativity to planning a skit about underage drinking. Contact Ashley Bracy at abracy@propeople.org to learn more.
  
  
• On January 10, 2008, the American Lung Association held a press conference for the release of the State of Tobacco Control Report card.  Four students from Union River Healthy Communities' Chem-Free Club at Sumner High School presented the Senate President, Speaker of the House, and other legislators with report cards.  Also in attendance were youth representatives from Ignite Oxford County.
  
  
• At the Health Policy Partners of Maine Hall of Flags event on January 21, 2008, 12 students from Partners for Healthier Communities in Sanford who belong to the Sanford-Springvale YMCA Leadership Club walked around the State House representing different youth statistics around smoking: students represented children exposed to second hand smoke in vehicles, the number of kids that will die as a result of tobacco use, and those Maine youth that will start smoking this year. They also took an official State House tour met with their legislators to discuss tobacco related issues.
  
  
• On January 22, 2008, students from Ignite Oxford County and Ignite Kennebec County, testified in favor of passing LD 2012, An Act to Protect Children in Vehicles from Secondhand Smoke, in front of the Health and Human Services Committee of the legislature.  The bill passed (as amended) the committee by a vote of 12-1.  Contact Amy Olfene at Health Policy Partners of Maine at aolfene@portlandmaine.gov to find out how YOU can get involved by contacting your reps to urge their support for the passage of LD 2012 as it goes to the full legislature.
  
  
• Choose to Be Healthy collaborates with a group at Wells High School, which is starting a "Schools for Schools" movement through the Invisible Children organization to help children suffering in war torn Uganda. Contact Nancy Cotty at ncotty@wocsd.org for more information.
  
  
• Katahdin Area Partnership's YAP group at Medway Middle School completed the Sticker Shock program at local stores to raise awareness for how alcohol products are marketed. Contact Rose Deabay at (207) 746-3470 to learn more.

Messages From MYAN

• On April 7th & 8th, approximately 200 youth & adults from across Maine will come together in Augusta for the 4th Annual Maine Youth Anti-Tobacco Summit, sponsored by the Partnership For A Tobacc-Free Maine. See the events calendar below for more information!
  
  
• MYAN is hitting the road this spring to offer our Partnering for Change training to help youth & adults build skills and understanding to help them work together. Spots are still available for the following dates, some of which are dates rescheduled because of bad weather! You can sign up for any of our remaining trainings by contacting Chris Gorman at 874-0060 ext. 5918 or emailing him at cgorman@propeople.org.
  • March 14th--New England Outdoor Center, Millinocket
  • March 21st--Alamoosook Lakeside Inn, Orland (makeup date--original training on February 27th cancelled due to bad weather.)
  • April 30th--Lincoln Street Center, Rockland (makeup date for training originally scheduled for March 5th)
  • May 2nd--Meg Perry Center, Portland
  • May 7th--Fort Kent, specific location TBA (makeup date for training originally scheduled for March 12th)

MAINE! Maine got the nation's best grades on a national report card of states' antismoking efforts released by the American Lung Association (ALA). Check out the full report card.

You can also learn more from the State of Tobacco Control Report on the website of the American Lung Association of Maine, including how YOU can take action to encourage legislators to keep Maine's marks strong.

Announcements & Highlights from the Network:

• Are you concerned about the high number of youth that are drinking alcohol? Would you like to learn more about how alcohol advertising impacts youth and develop an action plan to reduce retail marketing in your community?
  
  Members of the Youth Empowerment and Policy Project (YEPP) completed a research survey on this topic to determine the true impact of alcohol marketing on Maine youth. YEPP members are available to complete a training for your group or organization about what they discovered.
  
  For more information visit YEPP's website. To request a presentation contact: Jessie Gogan, Program Manager at jgogan@neias.org or 207-626-3615.
  
  
• SMASHED, the underage drinking awareness film premiered by the Lewiston Youth Advisory Council in October 2007, will have a FREE showing in Callahan Hall in the Lewiston Public Library, 200 Lisbon Street, on Wednesday, March 12, 2008, at 7 p.m.
  
  The film recently received State approval for use in driver's education courses throughout Maine. Following the 25-minute viewing, a panel of youth council members will be on hand to respond to questions about why SMASHED was made, what the film's goal is, what the filming experience was like, etc.
  
  
• Planned Parenthood of Northern New England (PPNNE) is looking for more teens to be a part of their Teen Council.  The Teen Council is a type of advisory board for PPNNE, and meets  3-4 times per year to talk about all sorts of issues relating to teen reality, sexuality, relationships, sexuality education, etc.  There is a meeting March 12th from 6:30-8:30. Contact Lauren Grousd, Real Life. Real Talk. Project Coordinator, at 510.2201 x108 or laureng@ppnne.org.
  
  
• Good Will-Hinckley is promoting a new adventure camp program that will open this summer for 13, 14 and 15 year old youth. They will be running five 10-day camps, each for 10 youth. Each camp will be for single sex groups. Visit the camp website for more information.

Find Many More Events & Trainings Happening Around the Network on Our Events Calendar.