Post by title1parent on Jul 28, 2010 5:40:53 GMT -5
My son attended the MS version of this, called Operation Snowflake. Same premise and very worthwhile.
I believe MV will have this up and running as well this year.
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www.suburbanchicagonews.com/napervillesun/news/2539928,6_1_NA28_SNOWBALL_S1-100728.article
Program pushes kids to smart choices
July 28, 2010
By KATHY MILLEN kmillen@stmedianetwork.com
Dan O'Reilly never cared much for school. His attendance was spotty, and his grades left a lot to be desired.
One of the things he did enjoy at Naperville North High School was Operation Snowball. He threw himself enthusiastically into the alcohol and drug prevention group. He found acceptance and friendships there. He developed leadership skills. He enjoyed group activities.
To learn more
For more information about Snowball, contact Barb Reh at 630-961-2992, ext. 231, or breh@ncoyouth.org or visit www.ncoyouth.org.
For information on how to help support Snowball, contact Julie Lichter at 630-961-2992, ext. 228, or jlichter@ncoyouth.org.
So when he approached Snowball adult mentor Spike Grosshuesch during his senior year and told him he wanted to drop out of school, O'Reilly's biggest concern was whether he could still be part of the Snowball. Grosshuesch told him he couldn't.
O'Reilly decided to remain in school. He graduated in 2002 and served in the U.S. Navy for six years, doing a tour of duty in Iraq. He now works in a civilian capacity as a health technician at the Great Lakes Naval Base. He credits Snowball with pointing him in the right direction.
"It kept me in school," said O'Reilly, 26, now an adult volunteer for Snowball. "If I hadn't gotten my diploma, I wouldn't have gone into the Navy. It was a good experience, and it helped me out a lot. It was a big impact in my life."
For the last 25 years, Naperville's Operation Snowball has been a positive force in the lives of thousands of local teenagers. Financed by NCO Youth & Family Services, which partners with School Districts 203 and 204 and the Naperville Police Department, the program works to delay or eliminate the use of alcohol, tobacco or other drugs while developing life and leadership skills and increasing community involvement.
Snowball offers a variety of activities, including three weekend retreats at Camp Henry Horner in Ingleside. Currently, about 7 percent of the high school population in Districts 203 and 204 have attended a Snowball three-day retreat. Many more are on waiting lists. Almost 540 teens participated in Snowball events this past school year alone.
Learning truth
Grosshuesch, a counselor at Neuqua Valley High School, said the teen-run program offers many benefits for its participants.
"I've used Snowball as a substance prevention, team leadership, emotional wellness program," said Grosshuesch, a member of the state-wide Operation Snowball board. "I think the neat part of Snowball is that we have teens who get involved with the program when they are in high school, and they move on and go to college, and they come back as adults and want to re-enter the program because they found it so beneficial. I think that's what really helps sustain the program and makes it as impactful as it is right now."
Ian Shaw is one of them. Now volunteer co-director of Snowball, he first joined the group in 1989 while a student at Naperville North High School. He said the group kept him on the right path and showed him most teenagers are heading in the same direction.
"It's really easy to perceive that everybody uses, that everybody drinks," said Shaw, a middle school counselor. "So when you have some teens who are willing to stand up and say, 'I don't' and that most don't, it really helps change perceptions and helps teens realize that most kids are making healthy choices."
That's the good news, according to Karen Jarczyk, prevention director for NCO Youth and Family Services. A survey done last year by Power of Choice, a social norms marketing campaign focusing on District 203 and 204 high school students, found 71 percent of the 14,000 kids interviewed were alcohol-free and 87 percent were cigarette-free during the previous 30 days.
Other studies have shown that teens who have participated in Snowball at least three times are more likely to abstain from using alcohol than juniors and seniors in the general population, she said.
"When we began (Snowball), most students were making healthy choices," Jarczyk said. "But it's even more true now. As time has gone on, they're getting that message. The reason we do a campaign like that is because most students do think that everyone uses and that's what this program is about -- letting them know there are a lot of kids like them wanting to make other choices."
Money worth result
The bad news is Naperville's Operation Snowball is on shaky financial ground. The overall annual cost of the program is $120,000, Jarczyk said, and fees cover about two thirds of NCO's overall costs. But other funding sources are drying up. The United Way is no longer supporting alcohol, tobacco and other drug prevention programs, Jarczyk said, and funds from the Illinois Department of Human Services are shrinking.
Volunteers have helped defray some of the costs. They do the work of five full-time people, said Barb Reh, NCO's adult director of the program.
Reh and her husband, John, got involved in Snowball while their daughter was a student at Waubonsie Valley High School and remained after she graduated in 1998. Now, as a member of the NCO staff, Barb Reh oversees more than 40 volunteers. What keeps them all enthused, she said, is the transformation of the teens who go on Snowball retreats.
"They come into it feeling they aren't good enough, and they are surrounded by people who tell them that they are," she said. "They leave feeling better about themselves. They're not alone, and they can deal with whatever they are dealing with, because now they have these friends with the same values."
Amanda Ferrari, a 2010 graduate of Neuqua Valley High School, said she is committed to maintaining the values she put in place in Snowball as she moves on to Illinois State University in the fall. The organization, she said, gave her more confidence, improved her interview and leadership skills and left her with positive memories.
"What made it so special to me was the fact I was able to give back what the program gave to me, which was an awareness of who I was as a person," she said.
"Finding myself in a high school of 4,000 kids is hard to do. The program made me stand out as an individual, and I found a place where I wasn't lost in the crowd. Through Snowball, I know who I am, and I know my morals and what I want out of life. I'm not going to let anything get in the way of that."
I believe MV will have this up and running as well this year.
----------------------------------------
www.suburbanchicagonews.com/napervillesun/news/2539928,6_1_NA28_SNOWBALL_S1-100728.article
Program pushes kids to smart choices
July 28, 2010
By KATHY MILLEN kmillen@stmedianetwork.com
Dan O'Reilly never cared much for school. His attendance was spotty, and his grades left a lot to be desired.
One of the things he did enjoy at Naperville North High School was Operation Snowball. He threw himself enthusiastically into the alcohol and drug prevention group. He found acceptance and friendships there. He developed leadership skills. He enjoyed group activities.
To learn more
For more information about Snowball, contact Barb Reh at 630-961-2992, ext. 231, or breh@ncoyouth.org or visit www.ncoyouth.org.
For information on how to help support Snowball, contact Julie Lichter at 630-961-2992, ext. 228, or jlichter@ncoyouth.org.
So when he approached Snowball adult mentor Spike Grosshuesch during his senior year and told him he wanted to drop out of school, O'Reilly's biggest concern was whether he could still be part of the Snowball. Grosshuesch told him he couldn't.
O'Reilly decided to remain in school. He graduated in 2002 and served in the U.S. Navy for six years, doing a tour of duty in Iraq. He now works in a civilian capacity as a health technician at the Great Lakes Naval Base. He credits Snowball with pointing him in the right direction.
"It kept me in school," said O'Reilly, 26, now an adult volunteer for Snowball. "If I hadn't gotten my diploma, I wouldn't have gone into the Navy. It was a good experience, and it helped me out a lot. It was a big impact in my life."
For the last 25 years, Naperville's Operation Snowball has been a positive force in the lives of thousands of local teenagers. Financed by NCO Youth & Family Services, which partners with School Districts 203 and 204 and the Naperville Police Department, the program works to delay or eliminate the use of alcohol, tobacco or other drugs while developing life and leadership skills and increasing community involvement.
Snowball offers a variety of activities, including three weekend retreats at Camp Henry Horner in Ingleside. Currently, about 7 percent of the high school population in Districts 203 and 204 have attended a Snowball three-day retreat. Many more are on waiting lists. Almost 540 teens participated in Snowball events this past school year alone.
Learning truth
Grosshuesch, a counselor at Neuqua Valley High School, said the teen-run program offers many benefits for its participants.
"I've used Snowball as a substance prevention, team leadership, emotional wellness program," said Grosshuesch, a member of the state-wide Operation Snowball board. "I think the neat part of Snowball is that we have teens who get involved with the program when they are in high school, and they move on and go to college, and they come back as adults and want to re-enter the program because they found it so beneficial. I think that's what really helps sustain the program and makes it as impactful as it is right now."
Ian Shaw is one of them. Now volunteer co-director of Snowball, he first joined the group in 1989 while a student at Naperville North High School. He said the group kept him on the right path and showed him most teenagers are heading in the same direction.
"It's really easy to perceive that everybody uses, that everybody drinks," said Shaw, a middle school counselor. "So when you have some teens who are willing to stand up and say, 'I don't' and that most don't, it really helps change perceptions and helps teens realize that most kids are making healthy choices."
That's the good news, according to Karen Jarczyk, prevention director for NCO Youth and Family Services. A survey done last year by Power of Choice, a social norms marketing campaign focusing on District 203 and 204 high school students, found 71 percent of the 14,000 kids interviewed were alcohol-free and 87 percent were cigarette-free during the previous 30 days.
Other studies have shown that teens who have participated in Snowball at least three times are more likely to abstain from using alcohol than juniors and seniors in the general population, she said.
"When we began (Snowball), most students were making healthy choices," Jarczyk said. "But it's even more true now. As time has gone on, they're getting that message. The reason we do a campaign like that is because most students do think that everyone uses and that's what this program is about -- letting them know there are a lot of kids like them wanting to make other choices."
Money worth result
The bad news is Naperville's Operation Snowball is on shaky financial ground. The overall annual cost of the program is $120,000, Jarczyk said, and fees cover about two thirds of NCO's overall costs. But other funding sources are drying up. The United Way is no longer supporting alcohol, tobacco and other drug prevention programs, Jarczyk said, and funds from the Illinois Department of Human Services are shrinking.
Volunteers have helped defray some of the costs. They do the work of five full-time people, said Barb Reh, NCO's adult director of the program.
Reh and her husband, John, got involved in Snowball while their daughter was a student at Waubonsie Valley High School and remained after she graduated in 1998. Now, as a member of the NCO staff, Barb Reh oversees more than 40 volunteers. What keeps them all enthused, she said, is the transformation of the teens who go on Snowball retreats.
"They come into it feeling they aren't good enough, and they are surrounded by people who tell them that they are," she said. "They leave feeling better about themselves. They're not alone, and they can deal with whatever they are dealing with, because now they have these friends with the same values."
Amanda Ferrari, a 2010 graduate of Neuqua Valley High School, said she is committed to maintaining the values she put in place in Snowball as she moves on to Illinois State University in the fall. The organization, she said, gave her more confidence, improved her interview and leadership skills and left her with positive memories.
"What made it so special to me was the fact I was able to give back what the program gave to me, which was an awareness of who I was as a person," she said.
"Finding myself in a high school of 4,000 kids is hard to do. The program made me stand out as an individual, and I found a place where I wasn't lost in the crowd. Through Snowball, I know who I am, and I know my morals and what I want out of life. I'm not going to let anything get in the way of that."