'The Gordie Foundation' Spearheads Alcohol Poisoning Awareness
Release date: 8/16/2005
'The Gordie Foundation' Spearheads Alcohol Poisoning Awareness
Yahoo! Financial News
'The Gordie Foundation' Spearheads Alcohol Poisoning Awareness Through Student Activists and All Inclusive Website
August 16, 2005
DALLAS, Aug. 16 /PRNewswire/ -- "The Gordie Foundation", founded in memory of Lynn "Gordie" Bailey, an 18 year old University of Colorado freshman who died of alcohol poisoning at a fraternity initiation ceremony September 17th, 2004, has organized student activists on over fifty colleges in preparation of the coming school year.
In addition, it has completed an all-inclusive website (www.thegordiefoundation.org) that provides information and action to those interested in learning more about student hazing and alcohol related issues.
The mission of "The Gordie Foundation" is to provide today's youth with the skills necessary to navigate the dangers of alcohol and prevent alcohol poisoning, binge drinking and hazing.
"Our goal is to educate kids, from grammar school through college, about the lethal dangers of alcohol," said Michael Lanahan, Gordie's stepfather and Foundation co-founder and president. "Most people don't know the dangerous games our children are involved in or the amount of alcohol that can kill. Hopefully, we'll be able to help make a change."
One of the Foundation's most important offshoots is "The Circle of Trust", a student run advocacy group in place at over fifty campuses. Each school is receiving educational and promotional tools, power point presentations, posters, graphics and Gordie merchandise. They will also distribute wallet cards that identify the five signs of alcohol poisoning, on-campus Speaker Series and an emergency 800 Hotline number.
The website, www.thegordiefoundation.org has individual college homepages where the activists can blog their stories, discuss successes and failures and post pictures of program events. The webpage also offers other sections called "Gordie's Story" with photos, blog, remembrances, writings and personal video; "Save a Life" that teaches how to recognize alcohol poisoning and binge drinking; "Hazing", where state statutes and individual lawsuits are featured; "Our Heroes", a spotlight on people working towards change and "Activism", what students, parents and civic organizations are doing around the country.
"The Circle of Trust" delegates are meeting in New York with other campus representatives to map activities for the upcoming the school year. One of the goals is to create a Gordie Awareness Week where 1700 flags are placed on participating college campuses. That number marks the number of students who die each year from alcohol related deaths.
Other Foundation goals include a national leadership symposium, ranking of college campus safety issues, a nationally televised PSA, a documentary distributed through "The Circle of Trust" chapters, literature for middle school and elementary children about peer pressure, brotherhood and alcohol poisoning and a book that looks at fraternity related tragedies and the action taken.
The Foundation is also committed to identifying legislators and governmental agencies that can assist them achieve their goals. They already have a Washington support team in place.
Said Lanahan, "Kids are naively power drinking and 'passing out' as a competitive sport. What they don't know is that the amount of liquor that makes someone pass out is dangerously close to a level that can kill them."
For more information please log onto www.thegordiefoundation.org.