REGION 1 ADMINISTRATION

North Georgia Alcohol & Substance Abuse Prevention Project (ASAPP)

Ester Lopez

Ester López, ICPS - Region 1 Project Director

Ester López is the Project Director for the Alcohol & Substance Abuse Prevention Project (ASAPP) in Region 1. She has worked in the social services for over 25 years with 15 years’ experience in the Prevention field.

​Ester has partnered with Family Connection Collaboratives, community drug-free coalitions, as well as other community organizations in Gordon, Cherokee, Fannin and Union Counties to help reduce underage drinking and bring awareness of this issue to forefront. Through these partnerships she has organized several events including the an annual Red Ribbon Week Celebration event and the House of Addictions in Gordon County.

Ester has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Applied Behavioral Science and is an Internationally Certified Prevention Specialist (ICPS) as well as being certified in Family Teaching Model of Behavior Modification & Reality Therapy.

Ester has partnered with Family Connection Collaboratives, community drug-free coalitions, as well as other community organizations in Gordon, Cherokee, Fannin and Union Counties to help reduce underage drinking and bring awareness of this issue to forefront. Through these partnerships she has organized several events including the an annual Red Ribbon Week Celebration event and the House of Addictions in Gordon County.

Contact Details

Ester Lopez
136 W. Belmont Dr. Suite 11 PMP #106
Calhoun, GA 30701
Phone: (770) 372-3703
Mobile: (770) 608-1280
Email: elopez@livedrugfree.org

The Council on Alcohol and Drugs has launched an Alcohol Awareness Campaign for North Georgia parents and caregivers in Cherokee, Gordon and Floyd counties to help provide resources and information to protect our underage youth from the harmful effects of drinking alcohol.

UPCOMING EVENTS

​House of Addictions - October 25th - 27th

​Gordon County Fairgrounds - Calhoun, GA: 8:00 pm - 11:00 pm - View ​Flyer

​Red Ribbon Week Celebration - October 20th

​Calhoun Recreation Department - 601 S. River Street: 11:00 am - 2:00 pm - View ​Flyer

First Friday of every month

Cherokee CPAW Meeting at Cherokee FOCUS office in Holly Springs - 9:45 am - View Map

Second Thursday of every month

Gordon CPAW Meeting at Calhoun-Gordon County Library - 9:00 am - View Map

PREVENTION MATERIALS

The North Georgia Alcohol & Substance Abuse Prevention Project (ASAPP) focuses on changing aspects of the environment that contribute to the abuse of alcohol. Environmental strategies aim to decrease the social and health consequences of alcohol abuse by limiting access to substances and changing social norms that are accepting and permissive of substance abuse.

COMMUNITY PARTNER SHOWCASE

Drug Free Cherokee
Georgia Family Connection
Gordon County School Logo
Cherokee County Schools
Calhoun City Schools

The North Georgia Alcohol & Substance Abuse Prevention Project (ASAPP) is working with community partners through a Community Prevention Alliance Workgroup (CPAW) which consists of three sub-groups: Epidemiological Workgroup (to conduct the needs assessments), Planning and Operations Workgroup (for strategic planning and overseeing implementation) and an Evaluation and Sustainability Workgroup (to evaluate the implementation).

REGION 1 COMMUNITY SPECIFIC STRATEGIES

Positive Social Norms

An environmental strategy that seeks to reduce misperceptions of norms about underage drinking. This is designed to correct misconceptions about what youth actually think and do concerning alcohol consumption, with the ultimate goal of reducing the early onset of alcohol use.

Promote and Enforce Social Host Liability

An environmental strategy that incorporates educational efforts to increase awareness of relevant laws, penalties, and enforcement initiatives, and stress to the public that it is unacceptable for adults to furnish minors with alcohol.

Sources of Strength

Sources of Strength is a strength-based comprehensive wellness program that focuses on suicide prevention. However, as a wellness program it also seeks to impact social issues such as bullying, substance abuse, and violence. This is accomplished by using peer leaders and Hope, Help, and Strength messaging to positively change school and/or community cultures around help seeking behavior, codes of silence, and perceptions of adult support. These strength messages are strategically designed by Sources of Strength and the local peer teams, to engage local culture and impact local groups of youth, teens, young adults, and/or parents.

In 2015 underage drinking cost Georgia $1.4 billion.

WHY JUST ALCOHOL?

2,375

Alcohol kills more kids and young people ages 18-25 than all other drugs combined. Youth ages 9-20 use it more than any other substance. An average of 2,375 people in Georgia die from alcohol-related injuries or illness each year.

Alcohol is the 3rd leading cause of death in Georgia.