CTC General Coalition Meeting Notes
12/17/08
Present at meeting: Richard Biagiotti, Cassandra Haughton, Peter Alexander, Lysa Newhall, Mallory Burns, Kim Rosenberger, Ryanne Filibey, Kathy McNulty, Amanda Richard, Casey Gardner, Sue Rowe, Dennis Thompson, Val Buchanan, Eduardo Brito, Jennifer O’Blenes, Jeffrey Downey, Kristen Homan, Maroli Licardi, Catherine Dhingra, Robert Connolly, MaryAnn O’Connor, Wendy Kent
The meeting started with introductions, followed by updates.
-Catherine provided a brief overview of the function and mission of the CTC for the benefit of new attendees
-Cassie provided an updated on the BSAS underage drinking grant, including a summary of the data collection process, and distributed a copy of a summary of the strategic plan (including the identified priorities and selected strategies)
-Catherine provided an update on the AG’s grant which ends December 31, including posters on busting myths about underage drinking which are being distributed throughout the city and the process of translating rules and regulations of the liquor licensing board into Spanish and Khmer; the AG’s grant is also providing financial support for a community event/dinner being held at the Ford School gym on January 27 that will include a presentation on foreclosure prevention
-The strategic plan submitted for the MassCALL2 grant has been approved by the state and implementation will begin in January. This initiative is implementing strategies to reduce opiate overdoses in the community
Announcements:
-Val talked about the upcoming MLK Day breakfast to be held at NorthShoreCommunity College. They are anticipating about 400 attendees, and there are still some seats available. The breakfast agenda will be youth empowerment based and will feature 3 youth who will be reading essays submitted.
-P.O.S.: the youth are currently involved in helping organize 3 events: the MLK breakfast, the Highlands Neighborhood Association community dinner, and an open mike night to be held at Lynn Arts on January 15 (part of the Lynn community summits forcus on establishing safe spaces for teens); they are also continuing to work on organizing park cleanups
-Maroli announced that Family and Children’s Services will be involved in a one-year pilot program focusing on violence prevention and youth services. The program will target 11 to 14 year olds at the MarshallMiddle School and at Breed.
-The Girl Scouts are continuing to work on bringing more programming into the community for the coming year
-Rich Biagiotti provided an update on college credit that can be obtained in return for community service; he also shared initiatives to support individuals who could potentially lose their financial aid if they get into trouble due to substance use while on financial aid
Following the announcements, lunch was served and the group broke out into subcommittees.
The next general CTC meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, January 28, 2009 from 11:30 to 1:00 pm at the Community Room at Lynn Housing Authority, 10 Church Street, Lynn.