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A message about drinking Photo by Jim Craven About two dozen students participated in "Hands Across Campus," an alcohol awareness campaign at Southern Oregon University Tuesday. Organizers hope their message got across campus, even if "Hands" didn't. SOU students hold hands for alcohol awareness By DANI DODGE ASHLAND -- An alcohol awareness campaign billed as "Hands Across Campus" only made it across the Southern Oregon University student union courtyard Tuesday. Still, organizers believe they made their point. "I'm hoping our message got through to the people who didn't participate, the ones who were just sitting here and didn't stand up," said Becky Lee, 20, the director of the Susanne Homes dormitory. "Because, I know alcohol has effected their lives." At noon, about two dozen students and faculty joined hands in the courtyard. They all had experienced the ill effects of alcohol on their lives. The event was one of several scheduled for Alcohol Awareness Week on the SOU campus. Lee organized the event because of experiences she had as a child. Growing up, her alcoholic sister tore apart her family. "She crashed the family car, came home drunk, and wouldn't go to school," Lee said. "My parents fought a lot. It was a tense family environment." Eventually, her parents divorced. As a result of all the upheaval, Lee decided not to drink. A psychology major, she hopes to work with teens after college. "Part of the reason I became an R.A., and then the hall director, is to educate people about alcohol," she said. "I promote responsible drinking: I'd be a fool to tell them not to drink. It's unrealistic when it's part of our culture to drink." Feather Gilmore, the campus health and wellness educator, called the first-time hands-across-campus event a success, despite the low turnout. "What was really great was this was student focused and student inspired," she said. "We want to support students ... having a voice." Gilmore said one of the most important messages college students need to hear is not how bad alcohol use is on campus, but how many students refrain from excessive indulgence. "Our own 1999 SOU survey showed 62 percent of students on this campus drink less than three drinks a week," Gilmore said. She said across the nation, only about 10 percent of college students drink more than 15 drinks per week. Some of those heavy drinkers also are binge drinking, which usually means consuming more than five drinks one after another. "It would be a mistake to assume that this type of heavy drinking is the norm for all or even most students," Gilmore said. "Norms across college campuses show the median number of drinks consumed per week is 1.5." Gilmore told students they should recognize that not all students are drinking. They should feel secure in their decision to drink sensibly or abstain. "Sometimes we make choices about alcohol without looking at the possible impact on our lives, or the lives of people around us," she said. "But you know, we have the power to choose, the power to change and the power to succeed." Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 1999, Medford, Oregon USA