Members of the Nemaha Against Drug & Alcohol Abuse (NADAA) Coalition recognized their two Peru State College interns Tuesday, April 20, during their meeting held at Auburn High School.

Laura Osborne, director, thanked Meagan Wood and Trisha Ondracek for their time. Wood and Ondracek served during the second semester of the 2009-10 school year.
“We were happy to have you for a time,” Osborne said.
Coalition members heard a number of reports.
One was the bill passed by the 2010 Legislature allowing local government officials to extend bar closing hours in Nebraska until 2 a.m. The bill does not allow off-sale items. Osborne said that she was not aware of any Nemaha County establishment owners requesting to extend their hours. Plans are to educate officials of governing entities on the new law. Concerns were discussed about festivals.
“We’ll have to see what happens,” Osborne said.
Letters will be sent to families of graduating seniors at Auburn and Johnson-Brock high schools. The coalition wants to let parents know the problems and ramifications of underage drinking during graduation celebrations. Coalition members reported good cooperation from officials of both schools.
“Let’s make graduation a happy time and not a tragic time,” Osborne said.
The Underage Drinking Task Force meeting is Thursday, May 6, at 5:30 p.m. at the 4-H Building. The task force will discuss focusing graduation parties on youth.
The Strategic Prevention Framework State Incentive Grant was discussed. The theme is Take a Stand. It targets underage drinking, drinking and driving, and binge drinking. Emphasis will be placed on Memorial Day Weekend and later in the year.
Coalition members contributed bottled water for proms at both Auburn and Johnson-Brock high schools. Posters promoting having a safe time at prom were also distributed at both high schools.
Nemaha County youth were among 400 from southeast Nebraska who attended the tailgate party Saturday, April 17, during the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Husker Red-White game in Lincoln.
Sunday, April 18, was trash pickup along Highway 136. It was reported that 300 more alcohol containers, 104 more tobacco containers and six less drug containers were collected than in last fall’s pickup.
It was reported that 182 students have registered for June Jam scheduled for Sunday-Tuesday, June 13-15.
During March, it was reported that 252,267 people were reached through NADAA events and activities.
The NADAA Coalition will next meet Tuesday, May 18, at 4 p.m. at Johnson-Brock High School. June’s meeting is Tuesday, June 22, at noon, at the Peru State College Student Center. The June meeting is a week later than usual because of June Jam.
Those present also discussed earlier meeting times during the summer. The July meeting date and site will be set later. During June and July, coalition members will focus on preparing for the Nemaha County Fair and back to school.