MEDIA RELEASE

For the seventh consecutive year, the North Hawaii Drug-Free Coalition (NHDFC) has been awarded a significant Drug Free Communities Continuation Grant from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA).

This Continuation Grant is in the second 5-year funding cycle, awarded to community coalitions that meet grant standards and specific guidelines and who demonstrate accountability and progress.

North Hawaii Drug-Free Coalition has been granted $125,000 which will be used to further their work towards strengthening community efforts to reduce substance abuse by youth.

The Office of National Drug Control Policy recently reported that communities with Drug Free Community coalitions funded by these types of grants have significantly lower rates of marijuana, alcohol and drug abuse, compared to the national average (9.9 percent, 23 percent and 10 percent lower respectively).

SAMHSA is an agency of the Federal Government dedicated to increasing availability of quality treatment and prevention programs for substance abuse and mental illness.

With their $3.5 billion budget, SAMHSA “funds and administers a rich portfolio of grant programs and contracts that support state and community efforts to expand and enhance prevention and early intervention programs and to improve the quality, availability and range of substance abuse treatment, mental health and recovery support services—in local communities— where people can be served most effectively.”

The North Hawaii Drug-Free Coalition, with Five Mountains Hawaii as their fiscal sponsor, is a regional network of community groups and agency representatives from the districts of Kohala, Waikoloa, Waimea and Hamakua.

Its goal is to develop effective strategies to reduce substance abuse in youth in North Hawaii through public awareness and education that will lead to healthier families and communities.

For more information, visit http://fivemountains.org/nhdfc