Underage Drinking to Be Topic of Blind Brook Community Coalition Meeting

PORT CHESTER, NY — The Blind Brook Community Coalition has set a meeting in which the problem of underage alcohol consumption in Rye Brook will be discussed.

The panel discussion, titled Safe Celebrations, will be held Tuesday, Dec. 6 from 7:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the Blind Brook High School Library. It is free and open to all adult members of the Rye Brook community, according to organizers.

The coalition said a survey given in November 2015 to all Blind Brook seventh through 12th graders found that 50.9 percent of seniors, 37 percent of juniors and 27 percent of sophomores had engaged in binge drinking within the prior two week.

There were 23 percent of students who drank alcohol said they did so in their or someone else’s home without permission of a parent. Another 16 percent said they used alcohol in their homes with their parents’ permission.

Coalition members said they have been working for eight years to combat underage drinking in the community. During that time, they learned that often children learn about drinking from their families and their first drink takes place at times of celebrations.

The panel will include experts from law enforcement, medicine and social work.

Blind Brook High School is located at 840 King St. in Rye Brook.

Photo credit: Blind Brook-Rye Union Free School District.