By Meara Isenberg

Staff writer

@mearaannee

Before joining the Assistance League of Coppell, retired elementary librarian Lynette Fortson saw how drugs affected her friends, students, and even children. Now having been a member for 6 years, she has set out to improve the lives of the coppell community- one kit at a time.

The ALC is now offering free drug testing kits to parents through Coppell High School’s Student Resource Officers.

Each kit includes a testing cup for the 10 most commonly used drugs by Coppell teens, a saliva alcohol strip, instructions for each test, and other useful information for parents.

“There’s a pamphlet in there about talking with your kids, there’s information in there about how long different drugs stay in your body, there’s a sheet in there for different street names of drugs,” Fortson said.

The ALC gives away 100-200 kits a year to parents who have an immediate concern or who just want to use it as a deterrent for their child.

“They are expensive at the drugstore, and might not cover all the drugs that are around Coppell,” Fortson said. “We stay in touch with the police to ensure that what we are testing for is what is in Coppell right now.”

To help pay for the kits, which cost about $10 each, the ALC is hosting a Christmas in Coppell Holiday Tour on Dec 4 and 5.

“Our goal is to help kids live a healthier lifestyle, make healthy choices,” Fortson said. “I may never know who it is, I just know there’s a need.”

You can go here for more information or to request a kit online.