GROUP LAUNCHES DRUG HANDBOOK

The Lloydminster Area Drug Strategy and Action Committee (LADSAC) has
new material available for people looking for information on drugs.

The LADSAC resource handbook has been completed and is available for
distribution through the public library resource centre. The handbook
deals with numerous issues, in addition to providing information on
drug facts, treatment centers, and different resources in
Lloydminster. The LADSAC says the completion of the handbook was
something on their radar since their creation, and hope it will help
facilitate better communication within the region.

"The handbook will be distributed among counselors and different
organizations like Big Brothers Big Sisters," said Teressa Krueckl,
co-ordinator for LADSAC. "Hopefully it will be a quick reference aid
for parents, businesses and students we're pretty excited the project
is completed and ready to go out."

Krueckl said LADSAC received funding from Family and Community
Support Services (FCSS) that was specifically geared towards
completion of the handbook.

"We wanted it so that if people were calling or coming in, I could
say 'Here it is,' rather than getting back to people," said Krueckl.
"We modeled it after a resource handbook available in Camrose as a
quick, easy drug reference."

Currently, there are 48 copies of the handbook available in print and
over 1,000 copies available on CD. The resource handbook is available
at the LADSAC office in the Community Services Building at the public library.

"We want them to be available and we want people to use them," said
Krueckl. "A lot of the information is available on the Internet, but
it is really easy to go in and get the information you want and give
it to a parent or friend."

Krueckl says the resource handbook is another weapon the LADSAC can
employ to help battle Lloydminster's drug problems.

"We are going to deal with what we've got, and we don't want it to
get worse," said Krueckl. "It is not going to be easy, and it's going
to be step-by-step we're here to support people and we're going to do
whatever we can to make it better."

In a previous interview with the Booster, the head of the
Lloydminster Public School Division hopes the resource handbook will
be beneficial for everyone involved.

"We want to strengthen the connections between various agencies, and
that starts with knowing who is in place and the kind of services
they provide so if an individual needs some assistance...they know
who to connect to and how to get there," said Michael Diachuk,
director of education for the LPSD.