Group formed to fight Lake Co. teen violence

A new coalition of concerned Lake County people have formed a committee to combat teen violence.

Carrie Flannigan, a victim counselor in State's Attorney Michael Waller's office, said the group was formed to address an issue effecting an increasing number of teens.

Victim counselors, staff from A Safe Place, educators and students involved in the group have already developed a pair of initiatives, Flannigan said.

Kits of information concerning the problem, advice on how to deal with it and warning signals of possible abusive relationships are being prepared for distribution at schools.

In addition, pocket safety cards with numbers to call in case of a problem are also in the works, Flannigan said.

Both will display the artwork of Valeriya Kravtsota, a recent graduate of Warren Township High School, who won a poster design contest on the subject.

The group is also exploring setting up a local Web site with information on the problem and establishing a telephone hotline.

Seminar set:

While we are on the subject of issues confronting teens, a seminar on school violence and student drug use is scheduled for Friday, Sept. 19.

The seminar, which will be held from 8 a.m. until 3 p.m. at the College of Lake County, will explore the effect of bomb threats, school lockdowns and drugs on adolescents.

The seminar is for educators, school counselors, administrators and police officers and is sponsored by the Lake County Juvenile Officers Association, the Lake County Juvenile Justice Council, the Regional Office of Education and CLC.

Featured speakers will include State's Attorney Michael Waller, Sheriff Mark Curran, Associate Judge Sarah Lessman and Regional Superintendent of Schools Roycealee Woods.

Preregistration fee is $15, $20 at the door. For more information call Judy Striedel at (847) 377-7831.

Firefighter honored:

The Gurnee Breakfast Exchange Club has named Gurnee firefighter/paramedic Christopher Koehn its Fire Department Employee of the Year.

Koehn, who joined the department in 1994, also serves as its public education officer.

In that role, the club noted, Koehn works with the public to increase awareness of fire danger and to minimize risks.

Koehn was honored at a ceremony Sept. 7 in Viking Park.