FELCH, Mich. (WZMQ) – North Dickinson High School senior, Maggie Mattson, along with her fellow student Maddie Applekamp, have spearheaded the revival of the “Sticker Shock” campaign, coinciding with Alcohol Awareness Month.
Next Friday across Dickinson and Iron Counties, students will be placing hundreds of stickers on bottles of booze in Tadych’s Marketplace and Super One Foods, as a part of the campaign.
The initiative involves 6 high schools from Dickinson and Iron counties. It aims to raise awareness about the consequences of purchasing alcohol for minors. Hundreds of stickers will be placed on alcohol bottles by participating students. Mattson, the brains behind the stickers created in her graphics class, emphasized the significance of the timing, especially with North Dickinson’s prom scheduled right after the campaign.
“We’re going to have an official meeting next week to see how many students can join. And it’s the perfect timing, because ND’s prom is actually the day after the sticker shock, so it’s perfect timing for us. So we’re going to have an official meeting to see how many students we can rope into this,” shared Mattson.
Reflecting on the importance of youth involvement, Mattson stated, “I’m a senior this year, so this is my last prom. All this graduation stuff is happening. And I think that if we can slowly show that the youth is backing this up. The youth wants it to change. It’s not just the adults. We are standing on this too. And I think that this sticker shock is starting to show that the youth is behind this alcohol awareness month.”
Law enforcement and advisors will support the students during the event at Tadych’s and Super One, slotted for April 19th. Sergeant Adam Ray is coordinating officers to be present at both Tadych’s and Super One in Iron Mountain, and Undersheriff Robert Reid confirmed Iron County police’s presence to supervise participating students at Super One in Iron River.
Tracy Johnson, Director of Prevention Services at Great Lakes Recovery Center, acknowledged the efforts of Mattson and Applekamp in strategically timing the campaign before prom and graduation.
“So this has been going on for a long time”, shared Johnson. “This started in about 2017. And throughout the U.P. There were probably about 6 or 7 of the Communities that Care coalitions that took part in the sticker shock. And then of course COVID came about, and there’s been a lot of changes with the coordinator positions. We wanted to get it back up and running,” Johnson informed, adding, “When it was talked about, it was Maggie and Maddie that said it would be really great to focus on the prom and graduation time. Because that’s when people are buying for the kids. So I think that really goes credit to Maggie and Maddie on the time when it was being delivered.”
Participating in Sticker Shock can contribute to a student’s volunteer hours, offering an opportunity for engagement and community service. Parents interested in involving their children in the campaign can reach out to Bob Boivin, the Prevention Coordinator for Dickinson-Iron Communities that Care, for more information.
bboivin@greatlakesrecovery.org
