Stoners beware.

Last month, we hosted its second annual winter Bong Night to educate parents about different kinds of drugs their children may be using and ways they may be using them.

“I put on the event to show parents trends that teenagers tend to exemplify,” said Substance Abuse Counselor Patrick Lawton. “And how they can help educate and stop their children from harming themselves.”

Lawton is leading the fight here against drug use by the student body. Lawton also hosts Bong Night at Marshall High School, Bryant Alternative School, West Potomac High School and Mount Vernon High School. The goal of Bong Night is to help parents become more aware of what devices their children could be using to take illegal drugs. This year’s event didn’t yield the same amount of attendees as the previous year, with only 15 people showing up to hear from Lawton and the Narcotics Officer, Joe Pittman.

“Last year we had around 170 parents attend the event,” said Principal Paul Wardinski. “Compared to this year’s number it’s a lot less parents, but it was still worth it despite the small number of people.”

Pittman doesn’t just tell parents about what their kids might be doing through a boring powerpoint; he brings in actual drugs to show them. He brings in tangible products so the parents can see and smell what their kids could be taking. The officer also showed parents examples of common things their child can buy at a grocery store or gas station that can be used to facilitate drug use. Things like common water bottles from a gas station can be used to create a device to smoke marijuana. Some students aren’t sure that this is the best thing for parents to be doing.

“I don’t think it’s necessary, it just seems unimportant,” said sophomore Jonathan Yantz. “Parents shouldn’t care about how they do it, rather, why they do it and how to stop their kids from doing it again.”

However, the administration does think it is important to educate parents about what their children might be up to. The reason it is held every year is more so because things change from year to year. Some rebellious teenagers are always finding new ways to take and abuse illegal drugs, so parents have to be up-to-date if they have any chance of helping their children stop these abusive habits.

“I think it is a good idea to inform parents about this stuff,” said senior Jackie Wood. “Our school is really big on weed.”

Even if a parent has raised their kid in a drug-free environment, he or she might still be pressured into experimenting with drugs by peers and friends. In high school, many students are more likely to do what their friends think is “cool” than what is morally important to themselves and their families. Some high school students also abuse their parents trust and get away with using drugs because they have their own means of transportation. The amount of freedom teenagers are allowed also grows as they proportionately grow older. These are just two of the factors that allow for young people to make possibly bad decisions without parental involvement.

That is why it is so important for parents to be able to identify what drugs might look like, what their child might look like on drugs, and what drugs smell like.

“I think some parents are just in denial, they are hoping that it couldn’t be their child,” said Wardinski. “I wish more parents would have come to this year’s Bong Night, I  know that I learn something new every year.”