It’s Too Daunting

It always inspires us to see individuals who are willing to take action to make a positive impact on the lives of young people. But when we hear it’s just too daunting, that’s never good.

In 30 years of witnessing courageous individuals getting involved, there are amazing people doing wonderful things. 

Several years ago we produced a film called Saturday Night High. Joel David Moore (Avatar, Dodgeball, Grandma’s Boy) played the lead role. 

It was a TV movie about the dangers of teen drinking. The main message is alcohol causes a great deal of harm to young people. It went into detail about how alcohol damages young brains. 

We first showed it to a focus group consisting of parents and children. After the show, Nick told his mother he decided that he was not going to drink alcohol until he grew up. When she congratulated him on his good decision, she asked him why. Surprised, he asked her, “Didn’t you hear what the doctor said?”

Talking to other children about the show, we knew this show could make a difference. Our director, Tom Monson created a plan to have every fifth grader in Oregon watch the show. He contacted the director of the agency that was responsible for reducing underage drinking. Tom presented her with his plan. It would have cost less than a dollar per child and would have had a dramatic impact on that group of children.

She Said, “It’s too daunting.”

Without giving it a thought, the director said, “Oh, my your project would be just too daunting.” 

Can you imagine the positive impact this would have had on these children? Statistics show that 6% of Americans have Alcohol Use Disorder ( a drinking problem). That means about 6,000 of the 100,000 kids would grow up to be alcoholics. We know we would have convinced many of them to not drink. 

Another statistic shows that 35% of fatal alcohol-related car crashes are underage drinkers. 

Alcohol also causes young people to suffer from poor judgment and use drugs, drink, drive, and take needless risks. 

Not only that, the dropout rate of high school kids is high among kids who drink and use drugs. I could go on and talk about but you get the idea.

If you consider the benefits to be gained, wouldn’t you think the effort would be worth the reward? We do. It would not be too daunting.

On the other side of the coin, there are many people who believe in education and are willing to help. These people also believe in preparing the way for future generations. 

I invite you to join us in this mission. As a sponsor, we will recognize your support across many forms of mass media. 

If you are a business owner, your sponsorship is tax deductible. (It is a good idea to check with your tax advisor) 

Learn more at savingourchildrencampaign.com. At the bottom of the page click the Win-Win Sponsorship link to learn more about how you can help.

Thanks for your time, 

If you would like to learn more about why we do this work, listen to the Bridge Builder.