As a junior in high school, I have sat through many assemblies covering topics varying from Halloween safety to social media addiction. Students crowd together in the gym or the auditorium and, oftentimes, only half-listen to the speaker. Once we file out of the room and find our friends, we discuss which classes we got to miss. Most of these assemblies have blended together in my mind, and I can’t tell one from the other.

On October 5th, former professional basketball player, Chris Herren, spoke to the high school students about his history with substance abuse. A general consensus among students was that it differed from all others. I can’t recall another speaker who has delivered such an unconcealed, raw account of their experiences. Mr. Herren did not sugarcoat his story and spoke to us as adults. In his hour-long discourse, he never told us, “don’t do drugs”. His tone was never condescending and did not feel like a lecture. We were able to see the harsh reality of addiction as we followed along with his journey. Although I cannot relate to experiencing substance abuse personally, nor have I witnessed it in my family, I still felt very connected to the topic, the harm and pain it causes and how easily it can start, due to Herren’s passionate delivery. 

The response from students was unprecedented. Herren’s message was discussed in all of my classes following the assembly. His highly emotional attitude about the subject was clearly contagious. Class participation in these reflections was maximal as students shared their thoughts and acknowledged the effectiveness of the assembly. I can confidently say that Mr. Herren’s assembly was incredibly productive and will be remembered by everyone in the audience.

Herren’s ideology of focusing on the first day rather than the worst day forced students to look inward. We were asked to reflect on the reasons teens and adults may turn to substances. He stressed the importance of being welcoming and supportive of our peers, and students at PMHS are taking that to heart. Pelham Together and the Student Association have partnered to organize several initiatives to encourage kindness within our community. At our Homecoming football game, we handed out glow sticks and held posters that said #BeYou and #JustGlowWithIt. On October 18th, we had our annual Say-Hi Day, in which students and faculty wear name tags and pronoun pins. The purpose of the event is to prompt students to say hello to anyone they may not usually greet. The next day, we displayed ‘Positive Post-its’ at the two main entrances of the High School. Students left compliments and positive messages for classmates and staff to read as they entered the building. The initiative was very rewarding as the post-it wall grew vastly over the course of the day. 

I think Chris Herren would be proud to know we heard him, and we will do our best to be there for one another.