By Mark Wineka
mark.wineka@salisburypost.com

SALISBURY — Terry Osborne, general manager for the Rowan/Kannapolis Alcoholic Beverage Control Board, knows his agency’s continued campaign against underage drinking is working.

He can tell from all the thank-you notes the ABC Board receives from parents and students who have attended the school assemblies the board has sponsored over the past dozen years.

The Rowan/Kannapolis system began programming in the schools in 2003 and has been partners with Salisbury Police Department and the Rowan County Sheriff’s Office in taking its message to more 100,000 students.

Osborne said the actual number will be 103,000 students after the spring Game Plan for Life speakers hit the schools this coming week.

The ABC Board is obligated to allocate 5 percent of its income to local law enforcement and 7 percent toward education. The education focus for many years has been against underage alcohol abuse and drug abuse in general.

“That ‘C’ in ABC means something,” Osborne said.

The Rowan/Kannapolis ABC System began its efforts to combat underage drinking in 2003 with in-house ABC enforcement. It has since expanded programs to involve local law enforcement and outside groups which have focused on bringing in speakers to reach youth.

Over the years, the Rowan/Kannapolis System has used organizations such as The Century Council (Foundation for Advancing Alcohol Responsibility), Roman Gabriel’s Sold Out initiative and currently the Joe Gibbs Game Plan for Life.

Osborne said those involved with the ABC program have included the District Attorney’s office, Alcohol Law Enforcement, colleges, high schools, middle schools, alternative schools and, most recently, a pilot initiative which challenges parents to talk to their kids about alcohol and drug issues.

Osborne himself has made numerous public services announcements on radio, along with PSAs in local publications.

Osborne said the local ABC board really started its effort against underage drinking by supporting legislation that would revoke an adult’s driver’s license if he or she were found guilty of providing alcohol to minors.

In the first year that bill was introduced, the Rowan/Kannapolis Board was the only one in the state to support it, and it did not pass. But it became law in the second year, and the local board received credit for soliciting its support.

Osborne said U.S. Rep. Richard Hudson, R-N.C., is recognizing his agency’s efforts on the House floor, and N.C. ABC Chairman Jim Gardner issued this statement:

“The Rowan-Kannapolis ABC Board has been a longtime leader blazing the trail on alcohol education and underage drinking prevention in the community.

“I commend the various partnerships with the county and local law enforcement, the school systems and alcohol prevention coalitions that Rowan/Kannapolis ABC and General Manager Terry Osborne have been able to put together to help reduce underage drinking.”

The school programs this coming week with the Game Plan for Life group will include current and former National Football League players Clinton Portis, Renaldo Wynn, Perry Tuttle, Roman Phifer and Marques Ogden; Richie Parker, vehicle engineer for Hendrick Motorsports; musician Nigel Smith; nationally recognized speaker Mike Hall and Derek Crawford from the Gibbs racing group; Dr. Richard Rolle, oral surgeon for the Charlotte Hornets; and M. Quentin Williams, an attorney and former FBI agent who held executive positions with the NFL.

David and Jason Benham, real-estate developers and reality television hosts from Concord, have a more religious-based message and will be scheduled at private schools, Osborne said.

Here’s an updated schedule of where the speakers will be this week:

• 8 a.m. Monday, West Rowan High — Wynn, Crawford, Parker and Hall.

• 1 p.m. Monday, Salisbury High — Wynn, Portis and Smith.

• 8 a.m. Tuesday, South Rowan High — Wynn, Crawford, Rolle and Williams.

• 9:40 a.m. Tuesday, Carson High — Wynn, Crawford, Rolle and Williams.

• 1 p.m. Tuesday, East Rowan High — Wynn, Crawford, Hall and Smith.

• 8 a.m. Wednesday, North Rowan High — Wynn, Crawford, Phifer and Hall or Steve Israel.

• 9:45 a.m. Wednesday, Henderson Independent High — Wynn, Crawford, Tuttle and Parker.

• 1 p.m. Wednesday, Kannapolis Middle School — Wynn Crawford, Tuttle and Parker.

• 10:30 a.m. Thursday, Cabarrus Opportunities — Wynn, Crawford, Hall and Smith.

• 2:15 p.m. Friday, A.L. Brown High — Wynn, Crawford, Ogden and Hall or Israel.

Contact Mark Wineka at 704-797-4263.