Suozzi Announces Grant Funding to Prevent Youth Substance Abuse

Glen Cove, NY - Congressman Tom Suozzi (D-Nassau, Queens) announced that the Levittown Community Action Coalition ("LCAC") has been awarded $125,000 a year for 5 years from the prestigious Drug-Free Communities (DFC) Grant. 

The DFC Grant funds coalitions like LCAC, which establish local nonprofit and community support services for the Levittown and Island Trees school districts to combat substance use among local youth and adults.

"Social media, peer pressure, and anxiety are all contributing to a rise in drug and alcohol use among kids in every community across the country. The Levittown Community Action Coalition's work serves as a role model for what can happen when people come together for the greater good," said Suozzi. "Working together, the Levittown and Island Trees school districts, the YES Community Center, and LCAC are affecting real positive change within the Levittown community."

During a press conference at the YES Community Counseling Center in Levittown, Suozzi presented a "check" for $125,000 to LCAC. Suozzi was accompanied by students from Levittown and Island Trees high schools during the announcement. The speakers included Adrienne LoPresti, LCSW, Executive Director of YES Community Counseling Center; Corinne Alba, LMHC, CPP, CASAC, Associate Director Community Outreach and Training at YES Community Counseling Center; Noelle Marvelli, LCAC, DFC Coalition Coordinator; and Larry Lamendola, a parent who lost his child due to a fentanyl overdose.

"This is not a short-term fix, and we're meeting this challenge head-on," stated Adrienne LoPresti. "LCAC has created a solid foundation with its community partners to implement evidence-based strategies to work together to create a safe, healthy, and secure community through the prevention of substance use. This funding acknowledges our efforts in response to this crisis, and we thank Congressman Suozzi for his continued support and advocacy."

"This is a national emergency. I am committed to ensuring that Congress and the Federal government do all in their power to stop the deadly scourge of substance abuse," said Suozzi. "It's way past time that America takes action."

"Bishop Desmond Tutu famously said, 'There comes a point where we need to stop just pulling people out of the river. We need to go upstream and find out why they're falling in,'" explained Suozzi. "The work that LCAC and the Levittown community are doing is stopping people from falling the river in the first place, and that's what we need to do as a society."

Throughout his public service career, Suozzi has embraced the wisdom of Bishop Tutu. During his tenure as County Executive, Suozzi spearheaded the implementation of a groundbreaking "No Wrong Door" human services system, which gained national recognition. This innovative system established a centralized campus housing all health and human services offices, offering a comprehensive "one-stop shop" approach to addressing the needs of every individual seeking assistance.

"We need to adopt and expand the 'No Wrong Door' approach in communities, schools, and youth centers across America. We must do more to address the needs of our young people and those most vulnerable. The Levittown community can and should serve as an inspiration and a blueprint for us to follow," Suozzi elaborated.

About Levittown Community Action Coalition:

LCAC, which has been recognized as one of our nation's leaders in mobilizing communities to prevent youth substance use, operates several initiatives to increase prevention, education, and engagement around substance abuse. Founded in 2015, LCAC works together with dedicated individuals and entities from the Levittown Community - including representatives from our schools, youth, law enforcement, media, hospitals, libraries, substance abuse treatment agencies, civic groups, businesses, religious organizations, state and local agencies, and other organizations involved in substance abuse prevention- to reduce substance misuse through education, awareness, and empowerment.

LCAC's YOUTH Coalition engages students from the Levittown and Island Trees middle and high schools on substance use prevention campaigns.

About DFC Support Program:

The Drug-Free Communities (DFC) Support Program, created in 1997, is the nation's leading effort to mobilize communities to prevent youth substance use. It helps fund community-based coalitions that engage multiple sectors of the community to prevent youth substance use. Recognizing that local problems need local solutions, DFC-funded coalitions engage multiple sectors of the community and employ a variety of environmental strategies to address local substance use problems.

The DFC Support Program provides grants up to $125,000 per year for five years to community coalitions to strengthen the infrastructure among local partners to create and sustain a reduction in local youth substance use. After five years, community coalitions may re-compete for another five-year cycle.