PEARL, MS (Mississippi News Now) -
Advocacy groups are reaching out to teens and youth to prevent underage drinking.
Mothers Against Drunk Driving, the National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence and Mississippi Underage Drinking Prevention held a town hall meeting Tuesday night in Pearl.
The groups are spreading the message that drinking is illegal and dangerous.
The guest speaker was Lou Ann Moore who lost her leg in 2001 when her motorcycle was hit by a drunk driver and repeat offender.
Sixty one year old Linda Hales of Pearl has struggled to overcome injuries she sustained after being hit by a drunk driver as a teenager.
She suffered brain damage, and her pituitary gland was destroyed.
"I think the children should have a chance to know what drinking and driving causes. I have been hurt for 46 years. I was 15. I wanted to have a life. I was dating, and I was in a coma for four and a half years. I was in intensive care for 397 days, and I'm just thankful to be here," said Hales.
"If you continue to drink at a young age you are more likely to become a target for risky behavior such as unplanned pregnancy, drug usage, alcoholism also violence and even death," said Daisy Carter, program director with the National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence.
According to national statistics, one out of four youth, ages 12 to 20, has consumed alcohol.
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