COUNTY FORCES JOIN IN BATTLE AGAINST METH

A kick from law enforcement and judicial officials in Graham and Greenlee
counties was the force behind several nonprofit organizations' banding
together to declare war on drugs.

Methamphetamine use in the two counties has increased by 90 percent in the
last two years, with the youngest documented users in the seventh grade.
Statistics like these prompted Greenlee Superior Court Judge Monica
Stauffer to ask nonprofit and community organizations to step in.

The project spilled into Graham County when participants ran into a brick
wall caused by Greenlee County's lack of resources.

Representatives from agencies in both counties are now the driving force
behind an army prepared to battle the methamphetamine epidemic with education.

"Our object is to get to the youth before they get to drugs," Roxann
Kopkie, program coordinator for Parenting Arizona, said. "We're working on
prevention instead of intervention."

The coalition's goals are twofold. Its first target is individuals and
agencies who work with at-risk users. The second step is to target users
themselves.

Kathy Grimes, prevention specialist for the Southeast-ern Arizona
Behavorial Health Services New Turf prevention program, said the statistics
are rising at an alarming rate, and the issue is national.

"Our coalition is operating with the motto of 'If not us, then who',"
Grimes said. "I see teens and pregnant women on meth, and someone needs to
do something."

The boost in meth use has hit Arizona hard, Grimes said. With most meth
being transported over the border from Mexico, the counties in southern
Arizona are the most attractive to foreign meth users and traffickers.

The ease of making meth and its accessibility has left law enforcement
agencies at a loss as to how to combat it, Grimes said. The coalition is
teaming law enforcement with schools, youth groups and other organizations
to prevent drug use before it destroys lives.

Preparations are in progress for three conferences in the two counties to
educate both communities to the dangers of the drug and offer solutions.
Panels of recovering users, police officers, probation and judicial
employees and representatives from Governor Janet Napolitano's office will
be present. The conferences are slated for February.

Methamphetamine is a seductive and ruthless drug, Grimes said. It produces
a feeling of euphoria, intelligence and well-being. Most users spend their
lives reaching for the same level of euphoria they experienced during their
first hits, but they never get there.