Get Involved with SAPCA

Information about getting involved with SAPCA
Page updated on September 20, 2023 at 12:21 PM
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Volunteer with SAPCA

Interested in making a difference in your community? Explore some of the ways youth and adults of all ages can get involved with SAPCA to advance our community's youth substance use prevention efforts.

Volunteer Opportunities

  • Facts and Consequences Presenter
    • What: Share information with middle and high school students about the facts and consequences of using alcohol and other drugs; peer pressure; and healthy ways to cope with stress through classroom visits and assemblies. No previous experience is required to volunteer and training will be provided.
    • When: Presentations take place between 8:30 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. Monday to Friday.
    • Time commitment: Presenters are required to attend an hour-long training before they begin presenting to students. Presentations range from 45 minutes - 1.5 hours in total length. 
  • Outreach team
    • What: Share information about healthy decision making with youth and families and promote upcoming SAPCA initiatives during community outreach events.
    • When: Outreach events generally take place during week day evenings and weekend afternoons.
    • Time commitment: Including set up and clean up, most outreach events are a total of two-four hours.
  • Event team
    • What: Work with the SAPCA coordinator and the event team to plan and host upcoming events and support event logistics.
    • When: Events generally take place during week day evenings and weekend mornings and afternoons. Communication about event planning can take place via phone, email, virtual and/or in-person meetings Monday-Friday during normal business hours based on volunteers' schedules. Volunteers may also complete tasks independently on their own schedule.
    • Time commitment: Including set up and clean up, most events are a total of two-four hours.
  • Project team
    • What: Support the coalition in carrying out initiatives in our action plan by working independently with the SAPCA coordinator and the Board of Directors.
    • When: Communication about event planning can take place via phone, email, virtual and/or in-person meetings Monday-Friday during normal business hours based on volunteers' schedules. Volunteers may also complete tasks independently on their own schedule.
    • Time commitment: Volunteer hours can be completed on a weekly or monthly basis depending on volunteers' schedules.
  • Op-ed author
    • What: Write opinion articles for local papers about key issues and events.
    • When: Communication about op-ed topics and key points can take place via phone, email, virtual and/or in-person meetings Monday-Friday during normal business hours based on volunteers' schedules. Volunteers may also complete tasks independently on their own schedule.
    • Time commitment: Volunteer hours can be completed independently on a weekly or monthly basis depending on volunteers' schedules.

No previous experience is required to volunteer. Contact Emma Beall at emma.beall@alexandriava.gov or 571.302.1022 to learn more.

Become a Member

Interested in becoming a member? Click here. Anyone is welcome!

See a list of current members

SAPCA Members

SAPCA's partners support efforts to prevent and reduce substance use and misuse in the Alexandria community.

State/Local Government

  • Department of Community and Human Services
  • Alexandria Parks, Recreation and Cultural Activities Department
  • Alexandria Library

Religious/Fraternal Organizations

  • ALIVE! Inc.
  • First Baptist Church

Law Enforcement

  • Alexandria Police Department
  • Alexandria Sheriff's Office

Business

  • The Neighborhood Pharmacy of Del Ray
  • Kim Hyde Consulting, LLC

Healthcare Professionals

  • Alexandria Health Department
  • Alexandria Community Services Board
  • Inova Alexandria Hospital

Schools

  • Alexandria City Public Schools
  • Bishop Ireton High School
  • Commonwealth Academy

Youth Serving Organizations

  • Alexandria 4-H, Virginia Cooperative Extension
  • Alexandria Campaign on Adolescent Pregnancy
  • Alexandria Gang Prevention Community Task Force
  • Alexandria Mentoring Partnership
  • Alexandria Sexual Assault Center
  • Boys & Girls Club of Alexandria
  • Casa Chirilagua
  • Community Lodgings
  • Friends of the Mental Health Center
  • Liberty's Promise
  • Mayor's Campaign to End Bullying
  • Opioid Work Group
  • Resilience Alexandria: Inform, Support, Elevate
  • SCAN of Northern Virginia
  • Tenants and Workers United
  • Youth Services Coordinating Council

Media

  • Alexandria Times
  • Alexandria Gazette Packet

Civic/Volunteer Organizations

  • Senior Services of Alexandria
  • Volunteer Alexandria

Substance Abuse Organizations

  • Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America

Participate in Our Events

See a list of our ongoing activities

Ongoing Activities

Prescription Drug Take Back Days

When: Twice a year (October and April)
What: SAPCA partners with local law enforcement and businesses to provide opportunities for individuals to drop off unwanted and expired medications.
Where: Alexandria Police Headquarters, First Baptist Church, Alexandria Fire Station 210, The Neighborhood Pharmacy of Del Ray
If you ever miss a Drug Take Back Day, you can always drop off unused or expired medication at one of Alexandria's three permanent medication drop boxes.
How you can help: Volunteer to staff a table at one of our locations. 

Project Sticker Shock 

When: Annually (October)
What: During Project Sticker Shock, teams of youth and adults visit stores in Alexandria to place "warning" stickers on multi-packs of beer, wine coolers and other alcoholic products, highlighting the penalties for furnishing alcohol to minors.  
How you can help: Volunteer to drive students the day of the event. 

Take Down Tobacco Day

When: Annually (April 1) 
What:  Take Down Tobacco Day  is a day of activism sponsored by the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids. Each year, more than 2,000 events are held around the country mobilizing youth to raise awareness about the problems of tobacco use in schools and the community.
How can you help: Contact Emma Beall at emma.beall@alexandriava.gov if you are interested in supporting Alexandria youth to take action against tobacco use.

Titan Takeover

When: Quarterly
Where: Alexandria recreation centers 
What: SAPCA and the Alexandria Campaign on Adolescent Pregnancy host teen nights open to all Alexandria teens that include dinner, games, a DJ, a photo booth and gift card raffles throughout the night.
How you can help: Join ACAP and SAPCA to help plan our next Titan Takeover.

Alexandria Youth Leadership Conference

When: Annually (August)
What: A free opportunity for rising ninth through twelfth grade students that live in Alexandria to participate in team building activities, hear from guest speakers and attend workshops about leadership, public speaking and becoming a community change maker. meals are will feature a networking session where participants will learn about leadership opportunities for Alexandria youth. Meals are provided to participants each day. The conference also features a networking session with youth leadership opportunities in Alexandria.
How you can help: Adults can nominate youth for the conference. Additionally, anyone interested in presenting a workshop or attending the networking session to share leadership opportunities with youth should contact Emma Beall at emma.beall@alexandriava.gov.

National Night Out 

When: Annually (August)
What: Each year, Alexandria joins communities across the country in celebration of National Night Out. For anyone who has not experienced this event, it is an evening where over 30 neighborhoods around the City host events, block parties, barbeques, etc., with the goal of preventing crime by building a sense of community. SAPCA partners with the  Alexandria Campaign on Adolescent Pregnancy and the Gang Prevention Task Force to perform outreach. In the past, teams have met at City Hall, joined a team and received neighborhood assignments to "cover the City" with messages about our work. Teams then drive or walk to assigned neighborhood events to interact with neighbors, have fun, eat good food and snap some pictures!
How you can help: Join a team and help us "cover the City!"

Healthy Conversations

When: During the school year
What: Healthy Conversations is an interactive workshop held in the community that features intergenerational conversations about healthy decision-making and avoiding risky behaviors as youth enter the teenage years. Dinner, childcare and interpretation are provided at these events.
Where: Middle and high schools in Alexandria, VA
How you can help: If you would like your child's middle or high school to host a Healthy Conversations event, please contact Emma Beall at  emma.beall@alexandriava.gov. 

SAPCA Coalition Meetings

When: Quarterly
What: SAPCA hosts coalition meetings open to our partners and all community members to share the latest information about past and upcoming coalition events. These meetings also provide individuals and groups with opportunities to share their insights regarding SAPCA's work in order to impact SAPCA's activities moving forward. 
How you can help: Contact Emma Beall at emma.beall@alexandriava.gov to sign up for our newsletter so you can receive information about announcements and upcoming events.

Dates to keep in mind

Want to be the first to know about community events hosted by SAPCA and our partners? Join our mailing list!