The Healthy Bainbridge Alliance (HBA), lead by teen leaders collaborating with
parents and community representatives, surveyed Island teens in February, asking:
what is your biggest concern? HBA then focused on addressing the top issue:
to raise awareness around youth alcohol and drug use, including vaping, in
our community and develop creative solutions to combat it.

One of the outcomes of the HBA meetings is to ask local parents to
sign a pledge to be part of the solution in reducing underage drinking.

Did you know that according to the bi-annual WA State Healthy Youth Survey results, BI high school students have engaged in underage drinking at an average of 35% above the state rate since 2002?

Did you know BI teens consistently report getting alcohol from friends, at parties, and from parents.

Did you know there is a proven relationship between underage drinking and the drinking behaviors of adult relatives, adults in the same household, and adults in the same community.

Underage drinking facilitated by parents remains a problem in our community.  According to a recent Bainbridge Youth Services survey, many local teens want us to help stop it.

Adult actions DO matter...help stop underage drinking on our Island:
1. Be aware that your example of drinking affects your teen
2. Help ensure that alcohol is unavailable to minors
3. Do not allow minors to drink in your home

To commit to a healthy Bainbridge, please sign the parent pledge

Sources used:

Healthy Youth Survey: Completed by 6, 8, 10 & 12 graders every two years, except during Covid - can be found here 

Misconception about adult supervised underage drinking - Australian report - info from Stanford with links to studies
(https://drugfree.org/drug-and-alcohol-news/parents-teaching-teens-responsible-drinking-myth-study/
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2018/01/25/study-parents-who-give-their-teenagers-alcohol-inviting-trouble/1067481001/​

https://vaden.stanford.edu/super/consult/parents-guardians-and-families/parents-role-student-alcohol-use-myths-v-facts​

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3125876/

CDC Fact Sheet about underage drinking
(https://www.cdc.gov/alcohol/fact-sheets/underage-drinking.htm

Connection between underage drinking and adult addiction
(https://www.responsibility.org/alcohol-statistics/underage-drinking-statistics