Hillsborough Township Celebrates Red Ribbon Week

HILLSBOROUGH, NJ — Red Ribbon Week is being celebrated in Hillsborough Monday through Friday, Oct. 25.

Red Ribbon Week is the largest and longest running drug prevention campaign in the country. We celebrate Red Ribbon Week at the end of October and we use the red ribbon as a symbol of our commitment to raise awareness about living a healthy and drug free life. The facts are alarming:

• New Jersey has the 6th highest rate of fatal youth drug overdoses in the country
• Opioid dependency can begin in just five days
• Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid that is approximately 50 times more potent than heroin and 100 times more potent than morphine. It is inexpensive, widely available and highly addictive. Drug traffickers are mixing fentanyl with other illicit drugs to drive addiction and create repeat business. Many victims of fentanyl poisoning were unaware they ingested fentanyl.
• According to the CDC, an estimated 107,511 people in the United States died of drug overdoses and poisonings in 2023, with almost 70 percent of those deaths involving synthetic opioids like fentanyl. Only two milligrams of fentanyl is considered a potentially lethal dose.
• 15 percent of New Jersey teens admit to drinking alcohol for the first time before age 13.
• 39 percent of New Jersey teens admit to smoking marijuana at least once daily

The theme for Red Ribbon Week is “LIFE IS A MOVIE. FILM DRUG FREE” It’s important as a community that we talk about drug addiction and provide resources to families. We also want to reduce the stigma surrounding drug addiction and alcohol abuse. Hillsborough was designated as a Stigma Free Community in 2020.

There are many activities going on this week throughout the school district and in the community.

There is a Poster Contest that is open to anyone in the community. Get creative and create a poster with the theme “LIFE IS A MOVIE. FILM DRUG FREE” for a chance to win prizes. There are 5 categories including elementary, Auten Road, middle school, high school and adult. The contest is open to everyone! All the posters will be displayed here in the Municipal Building.

We will be hosting a Narcan Training on Tuesday, Nov. 12 here in the Municipal Building. Narcan is a life saving drug that can help someone who has overdosed on Opioids. In 2022 New Jersey lost 3,000 people to drug related overdoses. Nearly 1⁄2 of all opioid overdose deaths involved a prescription medication. Most overdose emergencies happen at home in front of a loved one or in a public restroom, so being prepared for an accidental opioid overdose can be the difference between life and death.

Be prepared by getting trained to administer Narcan. The training is simple, informative and empowering. More information about the poster contest and the Narcan Training will be included in the Mayor’s enews over the next few weeks.

This press release was produced by the Hillsborough Township. The views expressed here are the author’s own.