Our mission is to ensure the good health and safety of our Macoupin County citizens. We are serving as an agent of prevention to inform and educate citizens about the problem of Methamphetamine use and the dangers it has to both users and non-users of the drug.

We are a group of volunteers working together to spread the word about the dangers and hazards of Methamphetamine production, use, and clean up. We have a speaker’s bureau that can speak to any group, organization, business, class or school. We support any legislature that makes it hard for the production or use of Methamphetamine. We have a program called Kids of Meth. This is our way to help children, whose parents were using meth, get a fresh start. We meet each month on the third Thursday at the U of I Extension in the Carlinville Plaza at 4:00 pm. Our program is willing to grow and do as much as our volunteers are willing.

Methamphetamine is an addictive stimulant drug that’s a more potent form of amphetamine. It can be smoked, eaten, snorted, or injected. Unlike other illegal drugs which are typically imported into the United States, Methamphetamine can be produced anywhere. Its production endangers the people in the labs, neighbors, and the environment. Street Methamphetamine has numerous nicknames such as, "speed," "meth," "chalk," "ice," "crystal," "glass," and "Tina."

Methamphetamine can permanently alter the brain’s natural chemistry (brain damage). This occurs because the drug produces high levels of dopamine, a neurotransmitter that the brain produces. After continued usage, the brain stops developing its dopamine and relies soley on Methamphetamine for its supply. As the body builds a tolerance for Methamphetamine, users

need more and more of the drug each use to feel the same high. Some short term effects of Methamphetamine use are: increased wakefulness; increased physical activity; decreased appetite; increased respiration; hyperthermia; euphoria; a false sense of well-being; convulsions, twitching, and jerking; aggressive behavior; increased heart rate; increased muscle tension; grinding of teeth; stimulation of adrenal gland; constriction of blood vessels; rise in blood pressure; impaired speech; dry, itchy skin; loss of appetite; hallucinations; acne or sores; paranoia; and insomnia. Some long term effects are: repetitious behavior, such as pulling out hair, compulsively cleaning, grooming, or disassembling and assembling objects; delusions of insects crawling under the skin which can lead to obsessively scratching the skin; malnutrition; liver damage; brain damage; severe weight loss; fatal kidney and lung disorders; insomnia; permanent psychological problems; carelessness about appearance; lowered resistance to illness; stroke; coma; and death.

MCAMC is sponsoring a clothing, quilt, and toy drive for Kids of Meth. Children who are exposed to Meth labs are often found to have high levels of drugs and toxic chemicals in their bodies. Children who are taken from a home where Meth is being made or used cannot take any of their belongings with them for fear of contamination of the hazardous chemicals used in the production of Meth.

We are asking your organization to help us with this project. You can help in any of the following ways: your organization or agency may volunteer as a drop off site for items, encourage your staff, club members, or clients to donate once a month/quarter, or make quilts to donate to children with no belongings. If your agency, club, or business would like to make a monetary donation or any other kind of donation, that would be appreciated as well. There are numerous ways we can work together to help those whom need it. If you are interested in making a donation or helping out in any way, please contact Paula at 217-899-3449. Here is a list of some of the things needed (we would appreciate the items to be non-used or new):

You can drop the items off at any of the already established drop-off sights:

Macoupin County Public Health Department

805 North Broad Street

Carlinville, Illinois 62626

217-854-3223

Macoupin County Public Health Department

202 West Center Street

Girard, Illinois 62640

217-627-2122

Macoupin County Public Health Department

112 South Macoupin Street

Gillespie, Illinois 62033

217-839-2350

Paula Campbell, President of MCAMC

Macoupin County Public Health Department

paula@mcphd.net

Larry Pfeiffer, Vice President of MCAMC

Regional Superintendent of Schools

217-854-4016

lpfeiffer@roe40.k12.il.us

Bob Fulton

217-854-4016

Jess Smithers

Regional Office of Education Agricultural Education Coordinator

217-854-2510

jsmithers@roe40.k12.il.us

Taryn Markezich

Gillespie High School Resource Officer

217-839-2114

tmarkezi@gillespie.k12.il.us

Rev. Larry Mouser

Carlinville Calvary Pentecostal Church

217-854-8724 (Church)

217-627-3476 (Home)