Summer 2005

Sally Yageric.

SALLY YAGERIC, ECCPASA's Parent Program Coordinator, enters her third decade in prevention. Since joining what was then the Amherst Y-U, Yageric has been instrumental in building up the SafeHomes Program both locally and across the country (as coordinator of the National Program).

She also serves as a member of the faculty of the New York State Office of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Services Bureau of Workforce Development. She is a certified Parent-to-Parent Trainer, a Parents Who Care facilitator and a co-presenter of ECCPASA's Critically Assessing Media program.

"I started in this field so that I could be more aware of the dangers that my children would face as they grew up," Yageric recalls. "In 1984, a small group of parents got together to reduce underage drinking. A grant from the state turned out to be the foundation for an agency that continues today.

"I continue because I believe that by doing what we do we are making a difference in children's lives every day."

SafeHomes was one of the programs highlighted at the first annual Parent Corps conference in Atlanta, Georgia. The conference highlighted how Parent Leaders are contracting, educating and mobilizing other parents in the children's schools to protect young people. It also provided new information and ideas for Parent Leaders to implement in the future.

At Funster Weekend 2005...

The Strengthening Families Program’s 2005 Funster Weekend kicked off on a June Friday with a pizza party send-off at St. James Church. From there, 25 young people from six to 15 years old boarded a bus to head to Cradle Beach Camp on the Lake Erie Shore in the town of Evans. ‘Smores and a sing-along preceded bedtime – resulting in a huge, mattresses-on-the-floor slumber party owing to one girl’s being unable to sleep in her bed because there were no side rails attached. Saturday brought out sprinklers and more wet fun, followed by rehearsal for the evening’s talent show, which featured marching drills, cheering, gymnastics and songs. Foosball, arts and crafts and computer skills filled up the first part of Sunday, before the bus departed for home. Many happy participants will also attend weeklong sessions at the camp during the summer.

Jan Burns garners CPS credential

Congratulations to ECCPASA staff member Jan Burns, who recently earned a Credentialed Prevention Specialist (CPS) certification from the New York State Office of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Services (OASAS). The CPS is one of two new credentials established by the State to recognize the importance of prevention and the professionalism of its practitioners.

Burns is Coordinator of ECCPASA’s Strengthening Families Program, or SFP (a U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration Model Program). Based in the Healthy Families Training and Resource Center on Harlem Road in Amherst, Burns helps administer the SFP two afternoons and evenings a week at St. James Church on Hastings Avenue in Buffalo. In addition, Burns is part of the team of instructors for the Focus on Consequences intensive educational intervention program. She joined ECCPASA in 1998.