Last month, two local students literally “took it to the hill” – and met with Washington State Representative Rick Larsen to share their concerns around underage drinking and substance abuse among youth in their community.  Maddie Fisher, Mikayla Johnson from Lopez School and Youth Engagement Facilitator Della McCullough representing the Lopez Island Prevention Coalition, along with 300 other youth from across the nation traveled to Washington, D.C. to participate in leadership development and meet with their congressional leaders.

“Youth leadership is key to the prevention work that we do here on Lopez. We are fortunate to have Representative Rick Larsen and Senators, Maria Cantwell and Patty Murray, who have made time over the years to meet with our youth. It is powerful experience for students to meet face to face with our law makers, tell their stories and ask for their support.  The youth of today are incredible, they care about the world in which they live and are passionate about making a difference,” shares Lopez Island Prevention Coalition’s Executive Coordinator Georgeana Cook. “The coalition has been very blessed to have this youth training requirement written into their grant. Over the past five years, we have been able to take ten youth to the National Youth Leadership Initiative and more than 50 kids to the Prevention Summit held in Yakima. ”

“Learning the power of policy and advocacy is part of the National Youth Leadership training,” said Della McCullough now entering her third year with the prevention coalition,” Our kids learn the power of asking questions to solve problems and using seven different ways to implement a solution.  Meeting with our lawmakers is a great way to reinforce what they are learns at their training. ”