The Monroe County Coalition for Drug-Free Communities hosted a forum titled “Addressing Escalating Drug Abuse in Monroe County” at Hope Christian Church on Oct. 1.

“I was very happy with the turnout,” said Gary Most, an executive board member of the coalition. “We would always like to see more people there, but we had over 100 people that we counted.

“Over nine agencies exhibited at the event, from information to law enforcement and recovery specialists. We had a good mix of parents, grandparents and we even had some youth there. We thought that was great. It gave us an idea for our next forum, which maybe we have one that is more youth focused. We’re looking at that now and exploring it.”

Exhibitors lined the entrance for concerned citizens to receive information on drug use and treatments offered. There were also three guest speakers: Monroe County Sheriff Neal Rohlfing; David Roberts, a senior counselor at The Crossroads treatment program; and Anne King, chief program officer at Human Support Services.

Most enjoyed the mix of speakers.

“We had a full spectrum. Here’s the issues, the problems we are seeing on the streets to how it affects individuals and families to the recovery aspect,” Most said. “I think that it provided a 360-degree picture that allowed everybody, no matter where they are at on the spectrum, to get some type of information and insight. Really, that is what we could hope for. I liked having it be local, so that we could generate local interest. We don’t have a ton of problems in this county, but we want to keep it this way. Keep it minimal.”

The speakers were introduced by Bill Rebholz, chairman of the coalition. Rohlfing spoke first, giving insights to the drugs he sees day-to-day on the job.

“The nice thing about Monroe County that I can provide to all of you is that I’ve worked in areas that it is pretty doom and gloom,” Rohlfing said. “It is absolutely little to no hope to many of the people that live there. It is because of many of the drug problems. From my experience, every other crime out there revolves around drug abuse and addiction. If you don’t combat that with enforcement and treatment and recovery efforts, things can really turn south for your community. But, like I said, in Monroe County, we don’t have quite anywhere near the problems that I’m used to.”

He did reiterate that marijuana is prevalent in the community. Over the past 10 months, there have been multiple misdemeanor marijuana arrests and that it is alarming, according to Rohlfing.

“Is there any way to say for 100 percent that everyone that uses marijuana becomes a heroin addict? No, it is not,” Rohlfing said. “But I can’t tell you the number of addicts that I’ve spoken with, people that I’ve arrested, interviewed, or tried to help, said they started with using marijuana.”

In September, the sheriff’s department seized more than $100,000 worth of marijuana plants in county fields. Rohlfing said many of those seizures came from service calls.

He said there have also been methamphetamine and LSD arrests as well.

“A message that I want to make clear is that we are doing everything we can and we will continue to do that,” Rohlfing said. “I can tell you 100 percent that the sheriff’s office and local police departments are going to do everything they can to move as many drugs out of Monroe County as we can. We will continue to do our part; that is a fact.”

Roberts spoke about the Crossroads treatment program as well as his own use of marijuana.

He said that at Crossroads, he works with people ages 13-25. They also bring families into the process.

Roberts said there are many misconceptions about marijuana. It may not kill someone, but it will cause individuals to change over time.

“When a young person smokes marijuana, they cannot grow emotionally,” Roberts said. “There’s no way around those facts. If you start smoking pot at 12 years old, then at 20 years old, you’re still 12. At 40 years old, you’re still 12.”

Those effects cause kids to think that they can try to act older than their actual age.

“You have 14-year-old girls out there who try to live like 25-year-olds and judge themselves by their adult experiences by having the emotional capacity of a 10-year-old because they’ve been smoking pot,” Roberts said. “That is why, really strongly, I absolutely believe a lot of (drug abuse) starts with marijuana. You don’t see many people start by putting a needle in their arms.”

Treatment is the solution. He said that during his work as a counselor, he sees that high schools and parents don’t want to admit there is a drug problem with their students or children. But ,he added it isn’t their fault and is part of the stigma surrounding substance abuse.

He also said treatment is a long-term process.

“If anyone had the early stages of cancer, you wouldn’t go, ‘Well, its just the early stages, so we’ll wait.’ Nobody does that,” Roberts said. “You find the best doctors, the best treatment that you can and you get into that.”

King was the last speaker. She said Monroe County is lucky to have this coalition.

“I know and I want you to know, this is a group of people who would move mountains to get things to happen,” King said. “For you, for your children, to provide services in this community, and to prevent substance abuse problems in the community.”

She also spoke about Human Support Services. It is an organization that is there for people to ask for help confidentially. The program has four levels of treatment. The spectrum ranges from people seeking help for the first time to needing to be medically looked over as an inpatient.

“We see more males than females. Usually court-ordered,” King said. “There is a high rate of drop-out and repeat offenses. So, we do see people come in for a couple of sessions and never come back again. For whatever reason, they are willing to live with those consequences until something else happens. Then they come back in again. Many adults (in their) 30s and 40s, sometimes older, report that they had their first drink of alcohol between the ages of 8 to 12. They report getting alcohol and sometimes drugs, marijuana, from their parents, frequently.”

As for the kids the program has come in contact with, she had this to say: “They all have stated, whether they’ve tried drugs or not, they know who to call or where to go to obtain drugs or alcohol.”

More information in the form of pamphlets and one-on-one time with the speakers and other professionals was made available to attendees on the way out.

For more information about the coalition, visit the Facebook page “Monroe County Coalition for Drug-Free Communities.”