Teens bring message of hope and courage to others who face addiction

For Immediate Release - Alexandria, VA

Donovan Kuehn
703-741-7686, ext. 125
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They may be young, but they already know too well the seriousness of addiction issues. Members of Texas Teens, an organization of teenagers recovering from alcoholism and drug abuse, were awarded the Emerging Leaders Award by NAADAC, the Association for Addiction Professionals at its Workforce Development Summit in Washington, DC.

NAADAC honored the Texas Teens because of their courage to overcome their own addiction and lobby on behalf of their peers who are facing the same addiction issues at such a young age. They carried a message of hope and recovery with them to the summit, and advocated for substance abuse prevention, intervention and treatment. NAADAC says it sees young people like this as the future of lobbying on behalf of addictions issues.

Texas Teens is active both in areas around Texas as well as in Washington, attending national conferences and meeting with legislators. Texas Teens is made up of teens aged 13 to 19, who are seeking or are in recovery from substance abuse.

"Texas Teens is my chance to give back. I am one of the lucky few that received professional treatment," said one of the teens.

NAADAC President, Mary Woods, was pleased to honor the youth. "NAADAC's thousands of frontline addiction clinicians know patterns of behavior can be established early in life. By encouraging people to make healthy choices while they are young, it helps make long-lasting change in people's lives and their communities. We are pleased to honor young people who have taken a passionate and thoughtful approach to under-age drinking," she said.

The teens received their award during NAADAC?s Workforce Development Summit in March 2006.