Michael DeLeon’s impassioned plea for students to stop vaping hit home with a few of them last week.
Seven vapes were surrendered after the assemblies at the middle and high schools. Each school has a collection bin dedicated to vapes and there are no punishments for students who throw away their vapes.
“We are in a crisis in Kentucky and we’re losing people to drug overdose death and drug poisoning. I’m begging you to listen to me,” he said to middle and high school students during their 90-minute assemblies. “I know some of you are addicted and won’t give up your vapes. I promise you that you will have medical consequences.”
DeLeon spoke very bluntly and openly with the middle and high school students about his experiences with addiction to alcohol and drugs. Ultimately, his choices connected to his addiction landed him in prison for 12 years in New Jersey.
“I don’t want what happened to me to happen to you,” he said. At age 11, he smoked his first cigarette and drank his first beer. By age 12 he was using pills. By age 16 he was using cocaine and moved to heroin at 17. When he was 19, he began using methamphetamine.
“I didn’t want to go to prison. I swear it wasn’t on my bucket list,” he said. “I lied to everyone who could have helped me.”
Rather than asking for help or accepting the help that was offered to him, DeLeon began using drugs. He explained to the students that all addiction begins with alcohol, marijuana and nicotine. Today’s youth are facing an even greater danger - vaping.
“Vaping is the biggest lie ever told by the tobacco industry. Big tobacco has been marketing to kids for years and now they’re targeting you,” he said. DeLeon showed the students pictures of vapes and underscored how many chemicals are in the devices. “I’m begging you not to touch it,” he said.
DeLeon encouraged students in all schools to talk about their feelings, tell someone if they are being hurt in any way and not choose substances as a way to cope with pain and anger.
He specifically targeted the dangers of vaping during his presentations at the middle and high schools. He spoke to the younger students about being kind to others and respecting others.
This link is a video that he has prepared for those who could not attend the parent academy. Virtual Parent Acadamey .mp4
The Steered Straight website has a number of free resources for teens and parents. You can access them at https://www.steeredstraight.org/.