Citing a lack

of community interest and a lack of direction, Peachtree City's Commission

on Children and Youth is recommending to the City Council that it be disbanded.

Since the commission's

goals are now being met by other agencies, there isn't much left to be

done, several commission members said at its regular meeting Tuesday night.

Cele Eifert,

the CCY's new chairperson, said the commission had a difficult time seeing

"where it fit in."

"We just

felt there wasn't going to be much of a purpose for our existence,"

Eifert said.

"Other

programs are taking up where we at one time worked for the city,"

said CCY member Chuck Lehman. He also cited a lack of interest from the

community, noting that only four people responded to a recent CCY survey

that was sent to all Peachtree City homes in the city's monthly Update

newsletter.

Originally,

CCY was founded in 1988 through the efforts of then-mayor Fred Brown.

The group was initially charged with studying alcohol and drug abuse among

youths in Peachtree City and developing a public education and referral

service to help resolve or minimize those problems.

In February

of last year, however, the City Council changed the CCY mission to "improve

the quality of life for the youth of the community." Over the years,

CCY was involved in a number of initiatives such as parenting workshops

and other programs aimed at youths for mentoring and other purposes.

The work of

Fayette Family Alliance Coordinating Teamwork, Outreach and Resources

(FACTOR) was cited as one of the reasons the CCY is no longer needed.

FACTOR is a countywide coalition of agencies serving local families.

Also, efforts

program are also meeting the CCY's original goals, several commissioners

said.

Two audience

members, however, urged the commission to rethink its wishes to disband.

Nancy Faulkner, who is also running for City Council, said she didn't

want to see the city drop its efforts because the issues are being dealt

with on a countywide basis.

Faulkner said

she is worried about unsupervised teens in the city and she would like

to see the city develop programs where those youths would be supervised.

"There's

no way to wipe out the drug problem," Faulkner said. "But you

can't keep sticking your head in the sand."

John Dufresne

said the commission should consider administering programs outside the

school environment instead of depending on the school system to meet the

needs of local youths.

Dufresne added

that the CCY should be "the city's advocate for children."

Eifert said

the community doesn't view CCY as a resource, however. Instead, members

of the public are more likely to rely on school counselors and local ministers

for assistance, she said.

Lehman noted

that only two citizens attended the meeting to oppose the idea of disbanding

CCY, even though it was announced in the newspaper last week.

He also noted

that no one else has come forward with any concerns about the concept,

including members of the public and city officials.

The commission

is recommending several options, including re-creating it as an authority

so it could have city funds to spend as necessary. Another option is for

the City Council to appoint a representative to FACTOR with that person

reporting directly to council.

The final option

is to disband the CCY entirely without any further action.

The recreation

department will still operate programs aimed at enhancing the lives of

local families, said CCY Coordinator Bernice Wassell.

"The recreation

department will still concentrate on family and youth concerns and certainly

promote strengthening of families," Wassell said. "It's not

going to go away."

Youth Advisory Board will

continue even if CCY ceases to exist

MUNFORD

[email protected]

Although it

appears that the Peachtree City Commission on Children and Youth may soon

cease to exist, the same fate isn't planned for the CCY's Youth Advisory

Board.

The YAB, comprised

of local high school students representing their peers' concerns to the

city, will continue to meet and will work directly with the recreation

department, said CCY Coordinator Bernice Wassell.

The board serves

as a youth leadership program that exposes students to happenings in the

community, Wassell said. The YAB, composed of up to 25 students at any

one time, meets twice a month. The YAB also has a representative that

meets with the CCY to relay the board's concerns to the committee, Wassell

said.

"The Youth

Advisory Board will continue under the recreation department," Wassell

said. "It is a voice of youth that must be represented in city policy

and recreation matters."

In 1990 when

the YAB was formed, it held a "Battle of the Bands" event that

eventually became The Last Fling, an annual program operated by the recreation

department, Wassell noted. Current advisory board members also participate

in mentoring local students, promoting Red Ribbon Week with prevention

programs in local middle schools and holding a youth arts festival for

the display of visual and performing arts created by local students.

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