Butler County drug and alcohol prevention specialist Lisa Gill is sharing with parents information about underage drinking and the need to talk with their children about the dangers. She was at a Power of Parents seminar Tuesday, April 25, at Knoch High School. William Pitts/Butler Eagle

JEFFERSON TWP — Butler County drug and alcohol prevention specialist Lisa Gill dropped by Knoch High School on Tuesday, April 25, to share her expertise with parents and urge them to start a conversation with their children.

At the Power of Parents seminar, a program of Mothers Against Drunk Driving, Gill stressed the dangers of underage drinking and the importance of sharing that information with their children.

“You don’t have to do it all in one sit-down conversation,” said Gill. “It can be several short conversations.”

A key point of the presentation centered on the fact that the human brain is not fully developed until the mid-20s, meaning that prolonged alcohol consumption before then could greatly impair that development. That is assuming that alcohol consumption doesn’t lead to other, more immediate consequences first, Gill said.

She shared written testimonials from two mothers who lost their children to underage drinking. One, the mother of a child named Olivia, lost her daughter at age 21 after a relapse.

“Later I learned that the parents of one of Olivia’s closest middle school friends allowed kids to drink at home as long as no one was driving,” wrote Olivia’s mother. “I had no idea. I trusted other parents and put my head in the sand.”

According to Gill, when it comes to steering their children’s habits, parents have far more power than they think.

Although reportedly only “about half” of all parents feel comfortable talking about underage drinking with their children, according to MADD, the group estimates that roughly three-quarters of children report that their parents are their leading influence on decisions regarding drinking.

Gill has been going back-and-forth between Butler-area schools advising local parents to “be a parent, not a friend” to their children — especially during prom and graduation season, when children are more likely to give in to peer pressure and make life-altering mistakes.

Starting a conversation with children about underage drinking is the hardest part, Gill said, especially if the child wasn’t thinking about it beforehand. The important part is easing the child into the discussion, picking the right moment, and knowing when to exit the conversation and start over if things get heated, she said.