Every Person Impacts
Community
Our mission is to join together in a common effort to build a healthy and safe community, reducing the risks of alcohol, tobacco, and other drugs while promoting the healthy attitudes and behaviors of youth in Southeast Missouri. Here’s what EPIC is doing in our community.
Our Projects
EPIC Schools
Is your school EPIC? The EPIC School designation recognizes area schools for their efforts in building a healthy and safe school community. The application process opens in late summer/early fall and usually closes by the end of the calendar year. Schools meeting the criteria for the EPIC School designation are announced in January. Those schools will be recognized in local media including the newspaper, on billboards , and on EPIC’s website and social media pages throughout the year. Schools may receive additional recognition for students, faculty and staff throughout the year for achieving this designation.
In order for a school to receive this distinction, the following criteria needs to be met:
- Written policies and procedures related to alcohol, tobacco, and other drug use
- Age appropriate prevention programming on campus
- Empowering students to lead and participate in activities beneficial to the school and/or community
- Teachers and staff professional development training opportunities related to substance abuse prevention
Congratulations to our 2024 EPIC Schools: Nell Holcomb R-IV, Notre Dame Regional High School, Central Academy, and Girardot Center.
Our Projects
EPIC Business
Is your business EPIC? The EPIC Business project recognizes area businesses for their efforts in building a healthy and safe community. The application process opens in late summer/early fall and usually closes by the end of the year. Businesses meeting the criteria for the EPIC Business designation are announced in January. Those businesses will be recognized in local media including the newspaper, on billboards, and on EPIC’s website and social media pages throughout the year. Businesses may receive additional thank you items throughout the year for achieving this designation.
For a business to receive this designation, the following criteria need to be met:
- Business has strong written policies with specific, consistent consequences related to alcohol sales.
- Business utilizes evidence-based underage drinking prevention practices.
- Staff receive training on best practices for alcohol sales to prevent underage drinking.
Our Projects
Epic Ed.
The EPIC Ed. series is designed to educate service providers and others in the community on a variety of topics that have the potential to impact youth substance abuse.
The EPIC Ed. series is held quarterly. We arrange to bring in speakers on a variety of relevant topics with the hope of increasing awareness and knowledge about substance use as well as effective prevention strategies.
EPIC Events
Fun and Educational Events
EPIC hosts fun events in the community for young people, families, and all community members to enjoy. These events are free and open to the public and include fun activities and food. At this time, most of these events are offered as “grab and go” type events.
Our next community event is the Harvest Heyday at CoNEXTion Community Resource Center (402 South Sprigg) on November 22 from 3:00 – 5:00pm (or while supplies last). People should pull up next to the curb in front of CoNEXTion on Morgan Oak street, grab their prestuffed bag, and go.
EPIC Projects
Prescription Drug Take Back + Permanent Drug Drop Boxes
In an effort to reduce prescription and over the counter drug abuse, EPIC partners regularly with local police departments and the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) to host Prescription Drug take Back Events.
These events are typically held in October and April of every year. People may also drop off unneeded medications at any time at the Permanent Prescription Drug Drop Boxes at the Jackson and Cape Girardeau Police Departments.
Fun for All
EPIC Yoga
EPIC Yoga works with students, people in recovery, people in mental health settings, and other groups to teach basic yoga principles that help them become more aware of their physical, emotional, and mental states, and to regulate and improve those states through breathing, gentle movement, and mindfulness techniques. Yoga can be a powerful tool to ease distress in the mind and body to improve a person’s ability to navigate life’s challenges.
EPIC Yoga facilitator Jamie is a RYT500 Yoga instructor with over 700 hours formal training, extensive training in trauma-informed yoga, certificates in breathwork, and is a certified Meditation teacher.