By Catelyn DiLeva
Staff Writer
Sophomore Jillian Reed was recognized at the Manhattan Beach Unified School District board meeting on May 18 after submitting a blog post about the importance of saying no to drugs.
The blog contest was part of an effort by a Pass On It, a local organization to try and encourage kids to not do drugs, according to Reed.
“The organization hoped the anti drug message would be more well received if it were coming from a peer,” Reed said. “I think it’s better received because we are all the same age and it’s not like listening to an adult.”
Reed submitted her blog post to the Pass On It campaign in the fall after hearing about the campaign from her mother. The blog post asked the participants why they feel it is important to not take drugs. Families Connected helps support parents in their efforts to help their kids reach their full potential and live healthy, fulfilled lives.
“I really like writing so I figured why not submit the post,” Reed said. “I thought the campaign wouldn’t take too long and it’s a good message and I ended up being really happy with the results of my post because it’s rewarding seeing your work somewhere.”
The campaign was open to anyone who wished to create a post. Reed as well as two other anonymous people, all from California, won the contest and had their blog post published on the Pass On It blog and website, each winner was notified by email on Feb 18.
“The point I hoped to get across through my post was that life is short, time is precious, and we shouldn’t waste it, especially with things like drugs that can have monumental effects on the rest of our lives,” Reed said.
Reed won a gift card to the bookstore Pages and her work was published on the Pass On It campaign. Reed’s award is a part of the Families Connected program at MBMS and Costa which are associated with South Bay Families Connected which is also connected with Pass On It because both work in the MBUSD to prevent teen drug abuse and help parents help their kids.
“It was a frightening thing to share my writing and possibly have it published for everyone to see but now that it’s being publicized I am very proud and not scared,” Reed said. “I never actually thought mine would be picked but now since it has I am happy because that was the point of the campaign and it is rewarding to see my writing published.”
According to Reed, she hopes that her blog post inspires others to say no to drugs and reflect on what drugs can do to their lives and how they affect the people around you.
“I hope my writing is read by some other people and it helps them if they are struggling with drug use or abuse or something,” Reed said. “I hope to keep writing and possibly continue working with the Pass On It campaign because it was a great experience to have and be a part of.”
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