Three years ago, Bob Wise, vice president and general manager of the NBC affiliate stations here in southern Oregon founded the Southern Oregon Meth Project to help fight against the devastating effects methamphetamine addiction has on a community. In talking with law enforcement officials and drug treatment providers, he realized that his focus should be on getting out a message to those who had not yet tried the highly addictive drug. Established by stations KOBI and KOTI in 2006 along with several community sponsors providing funding, the planned three-year project is entering a second three-year term with the intent of continuing to target young people with its message of “Don’t do meth, not even once.” The project’s message is spread primarily through public service announcements and programs presented at school assemblies and community forums. I attended one such meeting last week, where guest speakers from the county sheriff’s office, city police and drug treatment facilities presented stories and statistics which made it clear that this substance has far-reaching effects on every aspect of any community in which it is found. Jackson County Sheriff Mike Winters told us how the Mexican marijuana cartels that fund some of the big grow operations in the forests of the Northwest take the profits from the sale of that drug to manufacture meth in large labs in Mexico. They then use the Interstate 5 corridor, as well as other major transportation routes across the country, to distribute that drug. While the source these days is often international, however, the greatest impact is certainly local. At least 65 to 70 percent of those in jail have some connection to meth, and jail health costs have soared due to the many and complex health issues of meth addicts. That, of course, affects every taxpayer, as does the fact that 75 percent of children in foster care are there because of meth. Dr. Rita Sullivan, executive director of an addiction recovery program, repeated that meth can have a user hooked after only one or two uses. She also made it clear that use of the drug crosses all socio-economic lines. This knowledge, combined with the  fact that most drug use initiates in middle school, makes it clear why the Southern Oregon Meth Project has chosen to present its particular message to young people. While it is still too early to call the program a success, it is certainly providing much-needed information and a clear warning to those at risk for being pulled into meth addiction. As the scourge of this powerful drug continues to spread eastward across the country, it is a message that other communities may want to get out there, sooner rather than later. Patty Vanikiotis, proofreader