Coalition Events

Thu Aug 9

Wellspring Helps Celebrate National Night Out 2018

Melisa Damcevska, Preventionist I For the past 35 years, annual National Nights Out across the country have been held in order to strengthen partnerships between police and the community, raise neighborhood morale and comradery, and create safer, more active communities. In Middlesex County, New Jersey, the vision is no different. National Nights Out events were held several communities throughout the county including Dunellen, Middlesex, Spotswood, Metuchen, South Brunswick, Milltown, South River, Piscataway, as well as Asbury Park in Monmouth County, among many others. Community members were given the opportunity to explore resources their own town has to offer, meet and…

Wed May 9

Be Smart About Medicine Awards Dinner 2018

By Melisa Damcevska, Preventionist I Every day, 2,000 teenagers take a prescription drug recreationally for the first time. Whether through self-medication or a lack of awareness of the risks, prescription drug abuse among adolescents is a growing and serious problem. To help raise awareness about prescription drug misuse among adolescents, the Coalition for Healthy Communities of Middlesex County has orchestrated its annual “Be Smart About Medicine” poster contest. Middle school students in grades 6-8 throughout Middlesex County are encouraged to submit artwork, whether through a written story or poem or a drawing, to showcase their freedom of expression as well…

Wed Mar 7

CADCA’s Annual National Leadership Forum – My Story

By Melisa Damcevska, Wellspring Preventionist Whether you are new to the prevention field or have been working in it for decades, CADCA’s annual National Leadership Forum is a powerful sight to be seen. Personally, it was my very first time attending, and I will be forever grateful that I was able to attend because of how eye-opening and empowering those four days in National Harbor, Maryland were. Prevention, for people not involved in the field, is a highly misunderstood topic. We as prevention specialists are constantly asked, how do you prevent something like this from happening? How do you possibly…

Mon Mar 5

2018 Young Women’s Conference Recap

By Karli Rymer, Wellspring Intern On February 28th, 2018, Wellspring Center for Prevention hosted the 14th annual Young Women’s Conference, My Journey, My Voice: Empowering Young Women, in New Brunswick, NJ. It was a day filled with interactive and educational workshops that provided students with an opportunity to gain valuable knowledge and emphasized the importance of life and social skills. The goal of the conference is for the attendees to return to their schools and share the information with the rest of the student body through different programs and/or events. The day began with provided breakfast and an amazing production,…

Tue Jul 21

13th Annual Middlesex County Prevention Education Summit

More than 120 professionals from multiple disciplines recently attended the 13th Annual Middlesex County Prevention Education Summit at the Middlesex County Fire Academy in Sayreville. “Addressing the Prescription Drug & Heroin Problem” was the focus of the 2015 event that was sponsored by the Attorney General’s Office, the Middlesex County Prosecutor’s Office, NCADD of Middlesex County, and Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital. Keynote speaker Freeholder H. James Polos addressed the audience with passion, reporting the steps Middlesex County has taken to get ahead of this rapidly growing epidemic. He challenged those in attendance to get involved and help to educate…