Have you heard about the new Chelsea group called SRSLY? (That's short for 'seriously' in case you must now silently admit you didn't know that already. Uh... you didn't? Seriously?) In a nutshell, it's an anti-drug campaign, but this one is a bit different than the ones I grew up with. Yes, they provide education and community outreach programs, which is of course essential. But the cool thing about SRSLY is that the intiative promotes fun, creativity, community involvement, hanging out with friends, being smart and respectful.... WHILE getting the rest of us involved, too. [photo source: www.srslychelsea.org]After all, you can teach kids that drugs are bad, underage drinking is dangerous and that you might ruin your life in more ways than one with risky behavior. But the reason so many turn to drugs and alcohol? Because they are b-o-r-e-d. Getting the community involved is key. Like, kids and teens so need something to do. Sure, there are lots of things to do in Chelsea (insert gratuitous link here), but honestly, there is not much of a night life and very few places for teens to hang out. As a community, we can help by getting involved -- we need to provide places to socialize, interesting things to do on Saturday nights, mentoring programs to help provide an outlet for all that teenage angst (art, music, computers, sports...), and respect and interaction with young people.
Whether or not you have children of this age, I think taking a look at what this program is addressing is an important part of helping our own neighborhood. If you're attending Friday's Chelsea High School football game, be sure to visit the SRSLY information table to get more details. If you're interested in getting involved in SRSLY, contact program directory Reiley Lewis (rlewis@cch.org) or advisory board member Angie O'Neill (angelaoneill@aol.com).
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P.S. Hey... any technologically savvy or web talented teens reading my blog? I'd love your input on putting together a teen page and adding more teen-friendly events to Things To Do In Chelsea. The pay is not stellar, but the gratitude and community spirit is way up there. ;-) Email me at leslie@surelutions.com if interested.
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