CAMPOBELLO RESIDENTS VOW TO FIGHT DRUGS

CAMPOBELLO - The days of turning a blind eye to drug use on Campobello
are over.

That was the main message coming from a Saturday meeting where
residents rallied together to fight the problem.

A group of Campobello residents has been carrying out a health needs
assessment, initiated by the regional healthy authority, to identify
the unique problems islanders face and possible solutions.

Gerry Hicks, chairman of the Campobello Island Health and Wellness
Committee, said after conducting interviews and examining survey
results, the committee concluded that drug abuse and addictions were
the most common recurring problems in the community.

On Saturday, experts from health and law enforcement agencies across
the province came to the island to offer their expertise and provide
information about the unique challenges faced by the 1,000 or so
residents of Campobello who must travel through the United States to
get to the rest of New Brunswick most of the year.

Cpl. Jonathan Nagy travelled to the island Saturday with good news.
Nagy said the island, which is policed by a single RCMP member, will
be receiving a second officer on the island.

Nagy, who has lived on Campobello in the past, said policing the
island alone is a challenging task.

The officer must be on call a lot to offer 24-hour coverage, there is
no backup and in dangerous situations additional help would have to
come from St. Stephen or the U.S., residents involved in crime always
know where the officer is and when he/she is off the island and the
community is so closely integrated that citizens do not always feel
comfortable going to officers with information.

Nagy said the criminal activity police face on the island is no
different from the crimes seen in small towns and villages across
Charlotte County.

He said narcotic use and alcohol abuse are prominent on the island and
lead to spinoff crimes such as thefts, damage to property, break and
enters, home invasions, impaired driving and spousal abuse.

Const. John Beck, an RCMP officer with the customs and excise branch,
said while the border is another level of enforcement on the island,
the waterways are a hard area to police.

"Fishermen know the water from here to Lubec, Maine, like the back of
their hand and they can go out in the middle of the night as easy as I
go to the convenience store and bring back illegal goods," said Beck.

Beck said prescription drugs are making their way from Saint John to
Campobello and from Campobello to Maine. He said illegal firearms are
coming into Campobello and ending up in Saint John.

Beck said enforcement is only as good as the people who provide
information and though it is a close-knit community, people can come
forward without giving their identity. Beck said residents can call
Crime Stoppers or a confidential person with the RCMP to provide
information.

Grade 12 student Emma Fowler-Ross said she knows of middle school
children who are getting into drugs because of the example set for
them by their parents. She said the school is so small that students
face an increased amount of pressure from their peers to be followers.

Fowler-Ross said if the school set up more programs and information,
such as the DARE program, students would be better educated at a young
age about drugs and would therefore make better decisions. Fowler-Ross
said if students knew the impacts of drugs they could carry that on to
their parents and their community.

She said she thinks the lack of activities for youth on the island is
a contributing factor to drug use.

Fowler-Ross said students have no one to talk to and nowhere to go.
Without a guidance counsellor in the school, she said students have to
go to a random teacher to discuss their problems.

"I think a lot of students have a lot of issues with talking to
regular teachers because they are part of the island too," said
Fowler-Ross. "They are not just part of the school, they go out and
talk about what happens in school. I think if they had a guidance
counsellor from St. Stephen three times a week that would benefit them
a lot."

The residents and professionals did not leave the Saturday meeting
without coming up with a list of things the community could do to help
curb drug use.

The group decided to encourage people to call Crime Stoppers and
monitor the number of calls in the next six months to see if it has
improved.

A number of people signed up to be part of a committee to provide a
place for children to go, organize activities during the week and
weekends, and start a mentoring program.

Residents committed to start a petition to get Aliant to provide
better Internet and cellphone service that would increase the
availability of tele-medicine.

A few individuals took the initiative to start a support group for
family members and loved ones of drug addicts.

A social marketing campaign is in the works to make people more
comfortable talking about mental health.

Those in attendance said they were also committed to start a community
watch program and a community newsletter.

Community members are invited to attend a meeting on Thursday that
will discuss the initiatives and results of the drug session as well
as the topics of governance, community and housing. The meeting will
begin at 7 p.m. at the Campobello Island Consolidated School.