Tuesday, May 13, 2025
5/13/2025
Drug-Free Community Continuation Grant 2020/Be the Influence Coalition: A Windham/Raymond Collaboration - Project Abstract The Be the Influence Coalition: A Windham Raymond Collaborative, is a substance abuse prevention coalition working in the communities of Windham and Raymond, Maine. Located 15 miles northwest of Portland, in Cumberland County, Maine, Windham is defined as suburban and rural. The town of Raymond with a population of 5,500 sits at the shores of Sebago Lake, a popular summer vacation destination. Although many people living in the communities work in Portland or the greater Portland area, Windham, with a growing population of about 19,000. Route 302 serves as the main roadway to New Hampshire which makes it the perfect vehicle for transportation and distribution of black market activity. In recent years, Windham now houses over 9 medical, soon to be retail marijuana vendors who proudly refer to Windham as the “Weed” capitol of Maine. The population according to the last census was 93% white, 2% African American, 2% Asian, and 2% Hispanic. While the median household income in both communities is $63,000, between 5-7% of students live below the poverty line and 30% of students qualified for free and reduced lunch, a 17% increase from the year prior. The socioeconomic diversity is visible in the landscape where older trailer homes are commonly nestled next to larger, newly constructed homes. It is also visible in the professions of the community members. There are commuters who have highly paid professional jobs in Portland, more than 600 people are employed at the state prison in Windham, and 15% of the population work in some form of construction. The two towns share a school system, Regional School Unit 14 (RSU 14) that includes three elementary schools, two middle schools, and Windham High School. The two communities have inconsistent messages about alcohol, vaping and marijuana to young people, but there is a broad commitment by community leaders to create thriving communities and healthy young people. Stakeholders in the community, people representing all sectors of Windham and Raymond actively are engaged in preventing teen alcohol and drug use. The coalition membership has increased from 20 to over 100 since 2015, not to include numerous regional and statewide partnerships that have hugely increased interest and participation for BTI’s strategic goals. With best practices for prevention, the coalition responds collaboratively by strong leadership and a dedicated commitment to changing behavior.
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