All-Stars Behind Bars

Pictured front row, from left: McKenna Simmons, Suriyah Beamon, Madison Morehouse, Reina Rodriguez, Kaitlyn Lea, Avery Neal, and Fenley McCullough. Second row, from left: Rosina Camarillo, Aubrey Lindsey, Hailey Christian, Madison Durant, Marla Garcia, Lauren Boulware, and Chancy Dodd. Third row, from left: Brianna Castro, Leonardo Carreon, Reagan Crow, Mallory Burnet, Gabe Kerr, Payton Mathis, Jose Velazquez, Grace Dixon, Allison Shaver, and Leo Jacobo. Back row, from left: Miguel De La Cruz, Angel Carrillo, Brian Tang, Dalton Currie, Lorenzo Mansilla, Andrew Foster, and Fabian Cordero.

The Drug Free All-Stars are a group of high school seniors from Angelina County schools that are selected to serve as role models for the community by living tobacco, drug, and alcohol free. For their October meeting, the All-Stars toured the Angelina County Jail. The All Stars saw first-hand what daily life is like for inmates and what happens to those who are jailed for substance misuse. During the meeting Agent Thomas Matthews, with the Texas Alcohol and Beverage Commission, trained the Drug-Free All Stars to conduct alcohol compliance checks to prevent the sale of alcohol to minors by local businesses. According to the National Survey on Drug Use and Health (2019), 96.5% of 12- to 14-year-olds who reported drinking in the last month said that they got the alcohol for free the last time they drank. A special thank you to Warden Stacie Fredieu and Captain Alton Lenderman for allowing the All Stars to tour the facilities and to Agent Matthews for the training.

To find out more about the Drug Free All-Stars, contact Abby Baker at (936) 634-9308 or by email at abaker@angelinacoalition.org. You can also visit our website at www.angelinacoalition.org or follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter @TheCoalition936.