Earlier today Nipmuc was fortunate to welcome Chris Herren to our school to meet with our students about the dangers of substance abuse. Mr. Herren is a Massachusetts native and a former professional basketball player who shares his life's story and his struggles with addiction with the hopes of making a positive impact on others.
Over the course of the past few weeks, Nipmuc has been preparing for his visit. On January 14 Nipmuc Peer Leadership hosted "Project Purple", a day sponsored by the Herren Foundation to support awareness about substance abuse while encouraging teens to make good choices and stand up to drugs and alcohol. On the evening of the 14th our Peer Leaders held a showing of the movie Unguarded, which tells the story of Mr. Herren's experiences as an NBA basketball player, motivational speaker, author, and sobriety advocate.
Today, Mr. Herren held two presentations: one for 9th and 10th graders and another for 11th and 12th graders. In his discussion he shared his emotional journey with our students. His message was moving, emotional, and intense.
Our hope is that today's presentations will have a lasting impact on our students. I encourage parents to discuss the message of the presentations with your children. These conversations can be so important in making this event even more important to our kids. I know they will have a lot to say about the presentation.
Nipmuc will continue its focus on substance abuse awareness during a "Substance Abuse Forum" to be held on Monday, February 4th from 6:30pm - 8:30pm in the Nipmuc auditorium. Please review the flyer below with information about the night. Speakers will include community mental health and substance abuse providers, the school resource officer, and school personnel. All are encouraged to attend.
Many thanks go out not only to Mrs. Fagan, Mrs. Bucken, and our Peer Leaders, but especially to Korie Grill and Karlie Jango who organized the event. Korie and Karlie brough Mr. Herren to Nipmuc as part of a DECA project. I am so thankful for their efforts in making a positive impact on our school.
If you are interested in learning more about Mr. Herren and his presentation, you can access the documentary of his life, Unguarded, below:
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