By Derek Cornet

Prince Albert students bring Sober House Project to La Ronge

Dec 11, 2018 | 11:00 AM

Students from Prince Albert were in La Ronge delivering a message of sobriety Monday and asked local residents to join them.

The Sober House Project was launched in October and three students from Prince Albert’s Wesmor Public High School spread the word about it ever since. As an effort to raise awareness of sobriety in society, Wesmor’s Students Against Destructive Decisions President Linden Howlett said residents are encouraged to place a sign in their window declaring their home as a Sober House.

“If you put a sign on your door or window, it means you don’t allow alcohol in your home and you don’t allow intoxicated people in your home,” he said.

When people complete treatment for alcoholism, Howlett noted most don’t have peers to support them in following a sober life. Since family members and friends likely still consume alcohol, he added there can be no one to turn to, so many start drinking again. The signs let people know there are sober families around them and send a strong signal to encourage others not to drink as well.

Sober House Project was inspired by Harold Johnson’s national best-selling book Firewater How Alcohol is Killing My People (and Yours), as well as the call to action by northern youth to address alcohol and drug use as published in a special report by the Saskatchewan Adovcate for Children and Youth last December. Howlett said he believes the fact young people are pushing the project will make a big impact as teenagers are also struggling with alcoholism.

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“People who are younger than high school are going out and drinking with their friends,” he said. “They’re not even old enough to buy alcohol by themselves, and they’re getting their hands on it and drinking every day.”

After the presentation from the SADD students, Johnson addressed the crowd and spoke briefly about how alcohol has affected his life. He also thanked the students for picking up the cause and trying to make things right, even though they weren’t the ones to make it wrong. Johnson said now the kids are cleaning up after the adults.

“These young people have read that book so thoroughly and explained it so completely, I have nothing left to say,” he said. “They told you. They understand it.”

Aside from the Town of La Ronge, which will likely pass a bylaw Wednesday to reduce the hours of bars and liquor stores in the municipality as of New Year’s Day, the SADD group has made similar presentations in Cumberland House, Prince Albert and Saskatoon.

derek.cornet@jpbg.ca

Twitter: @saskjourno