The Windham Town Council held its weekly Tuesday evening
meeting on March 5 at 7 p.m. at the Town Hall Council Chamber room. The agenda
items included a discussion on the Watershed Protection Grant applications that
were received from five area lakes and rivers, a discussion on rescue services
medical billing as well the need for updates to the animal control ordinance
referencing nuisance dogs.
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| Laura Morris and Dominic Cataldi |
The Council also heard from Be The Influence (BTI)
Coalition Director, Laura Morris, and other
coalition members as they provided
a presentation to share with the council the coalition’s mission, it’s work
within the community and to express their concerns regarding youth drug use and
how a long term habit has been scientifically proven to be harmful to youth
brain development.
Morris explained that BTI is a collaborative community
effort between leaders in Windham and Raymond and its goal is to spread
awareness about the dangers of youth substance abuse and address the issues
surrounding it. BTI does that though various projects and activities that
encourages youth engagement. It also includes training and education with
parents, at schools, town councils, etc. The students are provided up to date
information through their school curriculum and the many BTI student members
provide peer-to-peer education and activities to younger students in the RSU14
system.
Morris stated that vaping among the youth has become a
very important issue and is specifically targeted to children. It is advertised
to be safe alternative to cigarettes, but it still contains nicotine and it’s
just a dangerous. There are over 8,000 vape flavors, including “Kool-Aid”, and
“Cotton Candy” to name but just a few.
The greatest concern regarding vaping are the actual
vapor ingredients. These include the following:
Toluene (petroleum)
Acetaldehyde (disinfectant)
Benzene (Charcoal/lighter fluid)
Cadmium (batteries) formaldehyde (preserve)
Isoprene (rubber)
Nicotine
Marijuana and heroin can also be added
“We are not trying to be political- we are just trying to
be scientific,” Morris said regarding the addiction of nicotine on the body.
Referring to result from a study of Harvard Professor, Nora Voltrow, nicotine
can cause increased heart rate, trouble breathing, damage to lungs, and
increased acid reflux.
Morris stated that marijuana use among youth is also a
concern and she showed an image from Voltrow’s research that demonstrated
normal brain receptors compared to the brain receptors (or the lack thereof)
after long-term use of marijuana.
Asst. Principal of Windham High School, Phil Rosetti
joined Morris to provide additional information. “I’ve been an educator for 25
years. One thing this community does is care about its kids. Increased vaping
has become an epidemic, and couple that with the legalization of marijuana, it has
made our job very difficult. Vaping is also used for marijuana as well,” he
stated to the council.
He also informed the council that in some vaping devices
he has confiscated, he found that the THC level was at 93%. “Compare that back
to the 90s, when THC levels were only at 3%, we’ve seen the increase of the
addictive qualities.”
Rosetti stated that the schools along with the BTI
coalition are working together to provide alternative ways to keep students’ interests
in other things with an emphasis on making healthy decisions.
“Council, you are faced with a great responsibility to
balance the needs of the community. I do hope you’ll continue to give
thoughtful consideration to legislation that help support students in our
community.”
Morris introduced an active BTI student member and
Windham Middle School sixth-grader, Dominic Cataldi who has successfully
completed a public service announcement (PSA) that will be shown at Smitty’s
Theater. When asked how he felt about his PSA, he stated that he felt really
good about it and that it was a great educational opportunity and “….kept my
brain off drugs.”
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