More than 1,600 people turned out for Sunday’s CLA Blue Back Mitten Run 5K in West Hartford, where The Governor’s Prevention Partnership and the Hartford Marathon Foundation officially kicked off their “Prevention Starts With YOU!” partnership.
Partnership team members welcomed walkers and runners of all ages inside the post-race area, raising awareness of youth substance misuse prevention and handing out Deterra at-home drug deactivation pouches that can safely dispose of expired medications like pills, creams, and liquids. The pouches come equipped with conversation starters to help adults have critical conversations with youth about avoiding misuse.
“Hartford Marathon Foundation is one of the most recognizable health and wellness brands in Southern New England. We’re thrilled to partner with them on “Prevention Starts With YOU!,” Kelly Juleson, Co-President & Chief External Affairs Officer of The Governor’s Prevention Partnership, said. “Open and honest communication about the dangers of drugs and alcohol promotes healthy choices and living, a goal both organizations share.”
“The HMF community is made up of families with active runners and walkers of all ages that are interested in supporting and growing healthy communities. Partnering with the ‘Prevention Starts with YOU’ initiative provides a great opportunity to share their valuable resources among our community to help spread the word,” said Josh Miller, president of the Hartford Marathon Foundation.
Hartford Marathon Foundation, along with other partner organizations and agencies in the region, will distribute a total of 50,000 conversation starters and drug deactivation and disposal pouches to residents of Greater Hartford and New Haven through September 2024. The pouches can be used anywhere, anytime, and thrown into regular household trash, eliminating the risk of both misuse and a negative environmental impact. This initiative is expected to result in the elimination of more than two million unwanted pills or medications.
“Prevention Starts With YOU” is a Congressionally Directed Spending project secured with the assistance of U.S. Senators Richard Blumenthal and Chris Murphy and is funded through the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA).
Learn more about the project at PreventionCT.org.
Hartford Marathon Foundation, Inc. is a not-for-profit organization whose mission is to promote healthy living through fitness and physical activity for people of all ages, abilities, ethnicities, gender identities, orientations, and experience levels, and to use HMF events to support charity, sustainability, tourism and economic growth in communities. Hartford Marathon Foundation, Inc. was incorporated in 1994.
The Governor’s Prevention Partnership builds statewide capacity to prevent underage drinking and substance use and builds strategic alliances to promote the overall well-being of Connecticut’s future workforce. Created in 1989, the Partnership is a partnership between government and business leaders. Learn more at GPPCT.org.