A prevention event will return to the Lee County Civic Center for its 30th year this month to teach youths about good decision-making regarding alcohol and drugs through a 40-minute walk through play.

“Drug House Odyssey was created by community leaders to provide a collaborative program to show the deadly effects of underage drinking and drinking and driving; and to provide an opportunity for parents and grandparents to talk to their kids about the importance of making good decisions,” said Lee County Coalition for a Drug-Free Southwest Florida Executive Director Deborah Comella. “Drug House Odyssey has become a touchstone event in Lee County for families and teachers. We see many parents year after year as they bring their children. Teachers attend and use the event as a yearlong discussion about making good decisions.”

The event moved to the Lee County Civic Center in 2016 where it will be held again this year.

“I served as coalition chair for many years from its inception,” said Jim Nathan, former CEO of Lee Health, and one of the founding members of the coalition. “Drug House was first initiated in early 1990s by leadership of First Christian Church of Fort Myers and they agreed to collaborate with the Coalition on this event. We were at that location for quite a few years prior to major renovations that took a while and we needed to find other locations.”

He said while the locations have changed throughout the years, the concept has remained the same — “it is a ‘seeing is believing’ program with impressive acting vignettes of what happens when people make bad decisions with drugs, alcohol and other distractions that can impact many lives instantly for years, if not generations to come.”

“From the outset we saw this as a family and youth-oriented event. I have spoken with parents who came with their parents when they were children and then brought their children years later. I have spoken with parents who will not allow their son or daughter to get a driver’s license until after they had gone through the Drug House Odyssey experience. Some expressed this was even more important than driving lessons! I took my children when they were young so many times that they knew the entire script,” Nathan said.

The event this year will be held on Tuesday, Feb. 6, Wednesday, Feb. 7 and Thursday, Feb. 8 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. for Lee County fifth grade classes by reservation.

Comella said according to the “Monitoring the Future” study, age 10 can be the onset of alcohol use by children. She said additionally it has been found that the walk-through play format is most effective for ages 10 to 12 years old.

Comella explained Drug House Odyssey as a 40-minute play with six scenes — a party scene, a Field Sobriety Test, a complete courthouse set up by the State Attorney’s Office, a car crash and extraction scene and an Emergency Room moved down by Lee Health.

Family Night will be held from 5 to 7 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 7, which is free and open to the public. No reservations are needed.

“We do recommend that children under the age of 8 do not attend because of the content of the play,” Comella said.

Former Sheriff Mike Scott, and one of the founding members of the Coalition, said when his daughters were young, well before he became the sheriff, he and his wife always took them to the Drug House Odyssey.

“In that regard, I’ve been involved with the event for more than 25 years. The real-life reenactments provide a very powerful, visual reality of the many ways substance-abuse destroys lives. I would strongly encourage any parent or guardian to accompany their children at this life changing and potentially life-saving program,” Scott said.

The night will begin with a proclamation by city of Fort Myers Mayor Kevin Anderson at the Welcome Tent.

“Drug House Odyssey is funded and supported by the United Way of Lee, Hendry, and Glades Counties, and the many donors to its fund drive,” Comella said. “Drug House Odyssey in Lee County is one of the few events in the entire country that is staffed by the community heroes who serve our citizens daily. Law enforcement, state attorneys, doctors, nurses, EMT professionals, firefighters, all are the actual community heroes that are seen by the students and families who visit Drug House Odyssey. To us, this speaks volumes about the deep commitment that multiple Lee County agencies and organizations have to prevention and to keeping our kids safe and resilient as they grow up.”

The participating agencies include the Lee County Sheriff’s Office, the Cape Coral Police Department, Lee Health, Lee County EMS, Bayshore and North Fort Myers Fire Departments, the Lee County Civic Center, Port Authority Police Department, Lee County Parks and Recreation, Circuit 20 State’s Attorney’s Office, Lee County School District, Florida Highway Patrol, the Florida Department of Health in Lee County, Mothers Against Drunk Driving, the Hanley Center and the Florida National Guard Counterdrug Program.

Nathan said it is sad that such a program is still necessary and wish more people took advantage of Drug House Odyssey. He said instant bad decisions from good people can cause trauma for many that can have an impact for years, if not generations.

“With that said, it is wonderful that Coalition leadership and community partners — United Way, Lee Sheriff’s Office, other first responders and law enforcement, Lee Health, public schools, and donors have helped perpetuate a vital community program,” Nathan said.

The Lee County Civic Center is at 11831 Bayshore Road in North Fort Myers.