"People don't always need advice. Sometimes all they really need is a hand to hold, an ear to listen, and a heart to understand them."
That's the motto behind a new community campaign in Ignacio, "Give Support, Get Support."
A small group of teens in Ignacio, working with Southern Ute Community Action Programs and Celebrating Healthy Communities, started the program to provide resources and information for people with methamphetamine and opioid addictions.
The use of meth among the area's youth actually is really low, said Pat Senecal, director of Celebrating Healthy Communities. Only about two percent of area youth report using the drug.
About 13 percent, however, use prescription drugs to get high.
And while meth isn't used much by local youth, many see it in their homes or being distributed.
"It affects the entire family," said Chantel Cloud, a judge in the Southern Ute court. "It affects the entire community."
Cloud is one of four community members interviewed in a video for the project. She is joined by a former meth addict; Steven Burns, a paramedic at Los Pinos Fire Protection District; and Barbara Pevny, a tribal family court therapist.
Burns said social media and the internet play a large role in drug use in the Ignacio area. Youth learn there are new drugs and new ways to use them. What they might not realize is that the chemicals used to make meth and other drugs are incredibly dangerous. "It's dangerous for us, as well, just to walk in there," he said of emergency crews that can be called to a meth house.
Pevny, the court therapist, said she has seen four cases of meth use in the past year, and three of those involved children living in the household who were exposed to the chemicals involved in meth production.
Three years ago, there were two cases, she said.
"It's an unrealistic world you live in," said the former meth user, who is now sober. She thought her children didn't know about her addiction, but they did. "You can't think straight. You're unaware of your surroundings."
Pevny said support and counseling for opioid addictions are limited, but Peaceful Spirit in Ignacio tries to help these addicts.
It's a tough battle, however. Speakers in the film estimate there are at least 49 distribution sites for meth just on the Southern Ute Indian reservation, not to mention even more in the surrounding county.
The good news, Senecal said, is that most youth in La Plata County don't use drugs or drink alcohol, although there is a perception that more are using drugs and alcohol than actually are.
In an annual survey of local youth, 70 percent said they thought their peers were using alcohol, but on the high school level, only about 33 percent report using alcohol.
Instead of a "don't do this" campaign, Operation Healthy Communities tries to focus on positive activities that youth are involved in. The agency's "Too Busy" campaign points out that many local teens don't drink or use other drugs because they have other things to do.
The group has been working for years to identify positive role models for youth, as well.
"It's the science of the positive," she said. "We want people to get healthy and promote health from within."
The video is available for viewing at Ignacio Community Library. It was produced by Tony Corona of Corona Productions, a local video company.
