Pubdate: Wed, 14 Jun 2006 Source: Welland News (CN ON) Copyright: 2006 OSPREY Media Group Inc. Contact: http://welland.niagaracommunitynewspapers.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/4187 CHURCHES SHOULD BE APPLAUDED FOR WORK A group of Welland churches should be applauded for their efforts. These churches are planning a drug-proofing session in an effort to get Welland kids away from drugs and alcohol. One of the reasons we believe this session will be a success is because several people involved have done drugs in the past. We're not advocating drugs, but these people can tell you first hand how damaging they are. It's hard to explain the pitfalls of drug abuse if you've never done any. The group is led by Mark Brule, Dave Anderson and Carl Matthews. All three pastors seem eager and motivated to get kids off drugs and on to some other activity. We completely agree that the parents need to be involved with getting kids off drugs. The influence of parents is vital. We feel parents need to be honest and open with teenagers as opposed to threatening them with punishment. It's okay to tell teenagers that you did drugs, but tell them how it damaged your life. We're confident these sessions will help a lot of families across the city and we think these churches should be applauded for their work and forward thinking. - --- MAP posted-by: Jo-D