Burlington Police and Schools to Host Presentation on Addiction

For Immediate Release

Thursday, Sept. 3, 2015

Contact: John Guilfoil
Phone: 781-791-7627
Email: john@jgpr.net

Contact: Jessica Sacco
Phone: 978-769-5193
Email: jessica@jgpr.net

Burlington Police and Schools to Host Presentation on Addiction

Note: The Ginger Katz event at Burlington High School has been changed from 5:30 p.m. to 5 p.m. on Sept. 17.

BURLINGTON — Chief Michael Kent is pleased to announce that the Burlington Police Department, in conjunction with Burlington High School, will offer a special presentation by Ginger Katz from The Courage to Speak Foundation this month to parents and students.

Katz will be at Burlington High School on Sept. 17 and 18 to speak to parents and students about the harmful effects of addiction based on her personal experiences with her son Ian, who tragically died from a drug overdose.

Parents are invited to attend the presentation on Sept. 17 at 5 p.m. at the high school. Katz will speak one hour prior to the annual Back to School night at 6:30 p.m., where school officials discuss operations and procedures for the new academic year. On Sept. 18, Katz will present to students in grades nine through twelve.

“Given today’s heroin epidemic, we felt Ms. Katz’s presentation will offer an extremely important message to our students,” Chief Kent said. “We hope to prevent drug abuse as early as possible by educating students and parents about the truly devastating effects drugs can have on the lives of people and their families.”

This is the second time Katz has been to Burlington. The police department brought her to the high school in 2003 to share her story with students.

“Ms. Katz’s presentation is very powerful,” said Detective Tom Fournier. “She really relates her story to the students, as they’re able to look at her son and realize, ‘wow, he’s the same type of kid I am.’”

The Courage to Speak Foundation was founded in 1996, shortly after Ginger and her husband Larry Katz lost Ian. Since then, they have been dedicated to fulfilling a promise Ginger made to Ian: to do everything in her power to prevent this tragedy from happening to another family.

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