Kane juvenile council helps parents 'wake up' to signs of kids' drug abuse at home
Signs of illegal activity or even hard-core drug use may be found in a simple scan of your child's bedroom.
That water bottle can serve as vessel to store and transport vodka. A seemingly innocuous belt that has been taken off a pair of pants that but is still in a loop could be sign of tourniquet use for shooting up heroin.
These are two examples from "Wake Up Call," a presentation coming to Geneva High School and Central High School in Burlington in mid-January that features a life-size exhibit of a teen's bedroom with warning signs of drug and alcohol use.
Kane County Assistant State's Attorney Sarah Seberger attended a presentation in Indiana and said tips and information gleaned from "Wake Up Call" can be invaluable for parents.
"Parents would audibly gasp. It's things they never knew were happening," Seberger said, noting the belt and water bottle warning signs.
The Kane County Juvenile Justice Council is one of the community groups sponsoring "Wake Up Call," set for 7 p.m. Jan. 22 at the Geneva High School auditorium and 6:30 p.m. Jan. 23 at the Central High School auditorium.
At his monthly media meeting Tuesday, State's Attorney Joe McMahon said the council seeks to be proactive in its efforts to identify at-risk juveniles and provide them with access to programs and services to stay out of the court system and "on the right path."
McMahon said there's been a slight uptick in juvenile crime during the past year, with a lot of it being crimes of opportunity involving car burglaries where valuables are left out in the open or a car is left running outside while being warmed up.
Another tool provided by the council is a plastic card that police officers can give to parents. The card contains quick and easy-to-access numbers for a variety of social services and resources parents can access if their kids seem headed to delinquency.
Elgin High School junior Maurice Martin and his mom, Sherry Green, also were at the meeting to unveil the council's new logo, which Martin designed.
The final product was whittled down from 20 initial designs to five finalists during a two-month span, and Martin refined the final design with four figures holding hands and the three words: collaboration, support and intervention.
"What everybody puts in matter to the whole community," Martin said.
For more information, visit jjcouncil.countyofkane.org.