The newly formed Talbot County Parent Coalition, a group of parents concerned about our children’s’ safety, especially when it comes to alcohol and drugs, would like to remind parents that Monday, September 24 is Family Day – A Day to Eat Dinner with Your Children . The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University created Family Day – A Day to Eat Dinner with Your Children, to remind parents that frequent family dinners make a difference.

More than a decade of research by The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University (CASAColumbiaTM) has consistently found that the more often kids eat dinner with their families, the less likely they are to smoke, drink or use drugs. While there are no silver bullets – substance abuse can strike any family regardless of ethnicity, affluence, age or gender – the parental engagement fostered at the dinner table can be a simple, effective tool to help parents prevent substance abuse in kids.

According to Joseph A. Califano, Jr., CASAColumbia Founder and Chairman Emeritus, “America’s drug problem is not going to be solved in courtrooms or legislative hearing rooms by judges and politicians. It will be solved in living rooms and dining rooms and across kitchen tables – by parents and families.”

The Parent Coalition was formed under the support of Talbot Partnership, a 501c3 non-profit organization, to get the issues of alcohol and drugs on the table and discuss what more parents can do to better understand the challenges and opportunities our youth face. Talbot Partnership, which was founded in 1991 as a community coalition, encourages the community to recognize the problems and implement solutions related to alcohol, tobacco and other drug abuse by implementing policies, promoting early intervention programs and building a community culture that favors drug-free youth.

For more information on the Talbot Parent Coalition, contact Talbot Partnership or e-mail parentcoalition@talbotpartnership.org.