Giving Thanks & Giving Gifts Are Similar

Thanksgiving signifies a time of gratitude for all things. As we gather with our families for delicious dinners prepared with the best trimmings, we reflect deeply on what truly means the most to us and express gratitude for those things.

Giving thanks and giving gifts are similar...and they may be one and the same. They are the flow of love and gratitude. If you are not sharing love and gratitude, it is easy to become stagnant and stressed, which is not healthy.

This is the season when merchants really push us to say thanks and give gifts their way. I encourage you to consider a different way to say thank you and to give gifts — sit down and write someone a note and share your appreciation for what they have done in your life. It is not just a gift to the person receiving your note but it will be a gift to you because it will make you healthier and happier. Why? Because giving and receiving are part of the same spiritual energy. When and what you give will be returned to you many fold.

The holidays are a great time to take a step back, unplug and check in with our children to see how they are navigating life’s challenges and managing stress. Stress is a normal human condition. It’s our body’s way of dealing with any kind of demand that is placed on us – big or small, positive or negative, real or perceived. For many of us adults, we have adapted to things like workplace stress and the demands that come with balancing our family, occupational and social lives.

What most of us don’t consider, though, is that children also have to deal with stress; including the pressure to do well in school, achieve their goals in sports and other extracurricular activities, maintain social relationships and strive to meet the real and perceived expectations of their parents, teachers, coaches and friends. Young people, like adults, experience stress. And as is the case with adults, too much of it, not knowing the warning signs, not having support and guidance through life’s ups and downs and not feeling the freedom to talk about stress can lead to some serious consequences.

Families, schools and communities across Florida demonstrated their commitment to a Drug-Free America during 2015 Red Ribbon Week® (October 23-31). Informed Families, Florida's Red Ribbon Week sponsor, partnered with Ambassadors, agencies, organizations and businesses, leveraging resources and reaching more children and families with prevention messages. Red Ribbon Week was created after the death of DEA Special Agent Enrique “Kiki” Camarena, who was kidnapped, tortured and killed in Mexico, 30 years ago. The National Red Ribbon Campaign®, sponsored by the National Family Partnership, is the oldest and largest drug prevention program in the nation, with an estimated 80 million people celebrating each year.

Here are some highlights from 2015 Red Ribbon Week:

• Informed Families equipped schools across Florida with tool kits, featuring youth pledges, posters, parent flyers, morning announcements, newsletter entries, activity guides and more, through our Ambassador Program.

• Families and schools across the State entered Informed Families’ Florida Red Ribbon Photo Contest, which offered experiential learning while delivering the 2015 National theme message: “Respect Yourself. Be Drug Free.” The theme was created by a middle school student in Solon, Ohio. The school entry and home entry with the most votes in Florida will receive an iPad and $1,000 for a local K-12 school, courtesy of Informed Families. Stay tuned for the announcement of the winners in early December.

• Informed Families partnered with Discovery Education to promote its Red Ribbon Week- themed “Virtual Field Trip,” featuring a police canine training facility, to educators across Florida. Hundreds of Florida classrooms participated.

• Whole Foods Coral Gables selected Informed Families to be the recipient of its Donate Your Dime campaign during the month of October and for the remainder of 2015.

• Over $15,000 was raised by Informed Families and 30 Florida schools participating in the first ever Red Ribbon Walk & Wrap program, which supports local school projects and Statewide substance abuse prevention programs.

• Several schools were honored for being Red Ribbon Certified Schools, a designation given to schools who demonstrate year-round prevention excellence.

“Red Ribbon Week is and always has been a Prevention Delivery System,” said Informed Families President & CEO Peggy Sapp in her October President’s Message. “Through grassroots support in schools and communities, Red Ribbon Week sets the stage for parents, educators and community members to have open and honest conversations with their children about making healthy choices.”

Most importantly, Informed Families thanks the parents/caregivers, educators and concerned citizens who used Red Ribbon Week as an opportunity to talk to the children in their lives about the importance of being safe, healthy and drug free.

Long-time supporters Nancy & Jon Batchelor of the Batchelor Foundation will co-chair the 31st Annual Informed Families Dinner at Joe's Stone Crab Restaurant alongside daughter-in-law and son Anna & Jon Batchelor, Jr.

The Joe's dinner, which takes place in May (the end of stone crab season) each year, will raise funds to support Informed Families' prevention programs and initiatives across Florida, which are designed to help kids grow up safe, healthy and drug free.

Nancy & Jon Batchelor, who strongly support Informed Families and its mission of helping kids grow up safe, healthy and drug free, have attended and/or sponsored the Joe's dinner for many years. This past year, the Batchelors were Royal Order of the Golden Claw sponsors of the Joe's event.

"We are delighted to have Nancy & Jon Batchelor and Anna & Jon Batchelor, Jr. co-chair our 2016 Joe's dinner," said Peggy B. Sapp, president and CEO of Informed Families. "We look forward to working with such a wonderful, philanthropic and dynamic group to plan our best Joe's event yet."

For more information about the Joe's event, please contact Informed Families at edavila@informedfamilies.org. 

Photographed (L-R): Nancy & Jon Batchelor with Anna & Jon Batchelor, Jr., courtesy of SocialMiami.com

Want to equip your child with the best way to respond to negative peer pressure? Share these tips from the National Institute on Drug Abuse and practice using them together.

Even when your child is confident in his/her decision not to use drugs or alcohol, it can be hard when it’s a friend who is offering.

A lot of times, a simple “no thanks” may be enough. But sometimes it’s not. It can get intense, especially if the people who want your child to join in on a bad idea feel judged. If everyone is being “stupid” together, then they feel less self-conscious and don’t need to take all the responsibility.

But knowing they are just trying to save face doesn’t end the pressure, so here are a few tips that may come in handy.

1. Have your child offer to be the designated driver. Get their friends home safely, and everyone will be glad your child didn’t drink or take drugs.

2. If on a sports team, ask your child to say he/she is staying healthy to maximize his/her athletic performance—besides, no one would argue that a hangover would help someone play their best.

3. “I have to [study for a big test / go to a concert / visit my grandmother / babysit / march in a parade, etc.]. I can’t do that after a night of drinking/drugs.”

4. Have your child keep a bottled drink like a soda or iced tea with you to drink at parties. People will be less likely to pressure him/her to drink alcohol if he/she is already drinking something. If they still offer something, have your child just say “I’m covered.”

5. Have your child find something to do so he/she stays busy. Get up and dance. Offer to DJ.

6. When all else fails…have your child blame his/her parents. You certainly won’t mind! Ask your child to explain that his/her parents are really strict, or that they will check up on him/her upon arriving at home.

If your child's friends aren’t having it—then it’s a good time to find the door. Nobody wants to leave the party or their friends, but if your child's friends won’t let him/her party without drugs, then it’s not going to be fun for him/her.

Sometimes these situations totally surprise us. But sometimes our children can anticipate when alcohol or drugs will be used, such as at a concert. These are the times when your child should consider alternative plans.

Social Media Demonstrates Power of Grassroots during Red Ribbon Week®

30 years have passed since DEA Special Agent Enrique “Kiki” Camarena was kidnapped, tortured and killed in Mexico. Kiki’s tragic death led to the creation of the Red Ribbon Campaign®, now the oldest and largest drug prevention program in the nation. The National Family Partnership (NFP) turned Red Ribbon Week into a national event in 1988 and has sponsored it since that time. Many of you know that I’m proud to serve as NFP’s Volunteer President.

Times have changed since we started Red Ribbon. Red Ribbon Week is stronger than ever and I believe the internet and social media play a huge role. This year’s theme, created by a middle school student in Solon, Ohio, is “Respect Yourself. Be Drug Free.” The internet and social media are allowing us to see, in real time, many of the Red Ribbon Week activities, curriculum and events taking place in schools and communities across America. Parents, students, educators and community supporters from across America are sharing pictures, videos, ideas, articles and other content on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest, featuring this year’s theme.

Additionally, NFP thanks the agencies, organizations, and businesses who are doing their part to spread the message. Fran Harding, director of the Center for Substance Abuse Prevention, and Chuck Rosenberg, acting administrator of the Drug Enforcement Administration co-authored a blog (shared below) entitled “Red Ribbon Week Reminds Us to Respect Ourselves by Living Drug-Free.” Discovery Education is hosting a Red Ribbon Week themed “Virtual Field Trip” and over 5000 educators and students will be viewing a lesson on Thursday. The National Institute on Drug Abuse is sharing tools for Red Ribbon Week, including interactive games and videos. Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America blogged about our 5th Annual National Red Ribbon Photo Contest.

When selecting the right school for a child, parents look at achievement scores, academic performance, safety and overall reputation. Now, seven schools in Florida are being given the seal of approval for success in and commitment to academic excellence through drug prevention.

Red Ribbon Certified Schools, a program of Informed Families and the National Family Partnership, recognizes schools that improve academic performance by keeping kids drug and alcohol free, while engaging parents and the community.

This year's Red Ribbon Week Theme is "Respect Yourself. Be Drug Free." The theme reminds us that when we respect ourselves, we make healthy choices that support our bodies and minds and enable us to reach our full potential.

To give you a little background, Red Ribbon Week is celebrated in over a hundred thousand schools nationwide, reaching an estimated 80 million individuals annually, bringing awareness and support for safe, healthy and drug free children in the United States and beyond. Between October 23rd and 31st each year, schools organize Red Ribbon Week activities and celebrations, from pep rallies and essay contests to decorating the school and hosting special assemblies with prevention professionals and local celebrities providing a drug-free message to children.

Florida Governor Rick Scott appointed Informed Families President & CEO Peggy Sapp to Florida's Statewide Drug Policy Advisory Council.

"I'm honored to be selected to the Statewide Drug Policy Advisory Council," said Peggy Sapp. "I look forward to continuing to work together at the local, regional and statewide level to help kids grow up safe, healthy and drug free."

In addition to her work with Informed Families, Sapp is the Volunteer President of the National Family Partnership. She has over 30 years of experience in the prevention field at the local, state and national level and has served on the Advisory Councils of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy and the National Institute of Drug Abuse. Under Governor Jeb Bush, Peggy also served on the advisory council of the Florida Governor’s Office of Drug Control.

Sapp's current term began September 18, 2015 and will end September 6, 2017.

Other newly appointed members of the Council include Dorothy “Dotti” Groover-Skipper, founder of HeartDance Foundation Inc;  Doug Leonardo, executive director of BayCare Behavioral Health; and Dr. John Van Delinder, executive director of the Sunshine State Association of Christian Schools.  

Are you a Control Freak or do you play the role of a Clown or Hero?

Have you noticed how obsessed we are with our phones, being connected, texting, etc.? When someone is talking, is your brain busy developing a response; making sure to say “don’t forget this or that”?

We’ve become human doings rather than human beings. We try to fill every minute with doing something. Even relaxation is planned, attended and instructed.

When was the last time you sat down and took a good look at your family dynamics? Family Day is a good time to start.

In families, we learn “give and take” but our different temperaments create a dynamic where we learn to side step other people’s personalities and behavior. For example, the bossy person usually never sees that they are bossy…they are just trying to help. The rebel is unsuspectingly pushing to distinguish him/herself from the overachiever. The “family clown” doesn’t realize he’s uncomfortable and subsequently trying to lighten the mood.