$25K GRANT TARGETS DRUG ABUSE

Oxycontin Maker Gives L.B. Task Force Money For New Effort

LONG BEACH - A $25,000 grant to the Long Beach Substance Abuse Task Force
creates a safety net for Harrison County's children, officials at a news
conference said Wednesday.

The grant from Purdue Pharma, a drug manufacturing company, will pay to
launch Communities That Care, a research-based community development
program that aims to reduce problem behaviors, including substance abuse,
among children.

Harrison County is one of only 10 communities nationwide selected for the
grant. The news was announced at the USM-Gulf Park campus.

The Task Force also has received $14,000 from the Partnership for a Healthy
Mississippi for its countywide efforts.

"This process will give us a look at our problems, evaluate our resources
and identify where the gaps exist," said Fred Walker, Task Force chairman,
credited with spearheading the efforts.

Walker said he and several other Long Beach residents decided to seek
solutions after several friends buried their children following drug
overdoses. Long Beach last year had the highest per capita death rate from
drug overdoses in the county. Five of the 37 drug-related deaths were in
Long Beach.

Purdue Pharma, the maker of OxyContin, has offered $5,000 to pay for a
public forum on prescription drug abuse.

"If we can save the life on one child, it is well worth the effort," said
George Schloegel, CEO of Hancock Bank and a founder of Coast 21, a business
group that seeks to guide public policy.

CTC has been implemented in more than 500 communities. The one-year program
provides training and consultation in data collection and development of
community action plans.

"We have seen the results," said Clay Yeager, Purdue Pharma director of
community partnerships. "It is important that we know what substances kids
are abusing, but it is even more important that we understand why they are
abusing them."

OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma has given a grant to a Long Beach group that
will use the money to expand their efforts.

By the numbers

The Harrison County Coroner's Office reports the following on drug-related
deaths:

. 2004: 13 from January through June.

. 2003: 37.

. 2002: 46.