Taking Our Community Back From Drugs

Our community is full of kind, caring people who truly want to see it taken back from the drug epidemic that we're seeing every single day. We fully understand that sometimes good people make bad choices. We're in no way, form or fashion putting anyone down or making judgments. It's a terrible situation and we have the most sympathy for anyone struggling with addiction.

Help is out there, right here in our small town there is help for people wanting to get clean. There is even needle exchange programs but they aren't being used properly. What do we do when those people don't want help and refuse to take the steps necessary to overcome their addiction? Do we sit back quietly and allow them to run rampant through the streets, making messes and destroying everything in their path? -or- Do we stand up and say "enough is enough and we want our beautiful little town back!"

Lets take a stroll through town, if you don't mind coming along.

It's impossible and I do mean IMPOSSIBLE to walk or drive through town without seeing several people high and strung out. Finding drug needles is also a common thing. These days I refuse to walk down the street. If you live in the downtown area then you probably can't even sit in your own yard without seeing it. I challenge you to stroll through town and count how many people, needles or arguments you see on the street. How many children do you see outside playing in the sunshine and enjoying themselves in a safe community?

How many homes and buildings have we recently lost to fires? Go ahead, count. "TOO MANY" is it because people are trying to collect whatever they can and relocate or is it careless people setting fires out of meanness, grudges, thrills? Either way people are afraid!

Do you know how it feels to be afraid to go to sleep in your own home at night because so many homes are being set on fire around you? To wake up in a panic when dogs are barking or you hear a bump in the night? I sure hope you don't, but this is becoming the normal. I feel it, my kids and grandkids feel it, my friends and family feels it too. Can you imagine the agony of being afraid to leave your home alone while you go to work, not knowing if it'll be burned down, robbed or the wires ripped out it? It's not a good feeling at all but it's reality.

How many of you know where this is? Can you remember when it use to be one of the nicest streets in town? Now, when you drive through you have to explain to your kids why that man is laying next to the road passed out. The drug house across the street, the one that has no electricity, every drug addict in the area tries to live there. The one that has nasty messages spray painted all over the outside of it. Why does the city allow this?

There's still good people who live around here. Good people who are afraid and aggravated but feel helpless. What if you need to wash your laundry, well the laundry mat downtown isn't a very good option. There's always people loitering, fussing and fighting or just plain out of their minds. Cumberland Avenue was once the classiest, most sophisticated and beautiful street in town, it's heart breaking to drive through there now. But it's not just in residential areas. It's in parking lots at the places that we shop and visit on a daily basis.

This beautiful memorial to local veterans. If you want to see it, you're likely going to encounter the local druggies while you're there. See that parking lot right behind it? I was trying to take my grandkids to the dollar store and we had to step over two different drug needles laying in the grass. Don't take this the wrong way, yes the city does try to keep it clean. But unless someone is there guarding it every second of the day, this is going to continue to happen.

Folks, we (Jellico Mountain Community) are just a few local citizens who try very hard, every single day to think of ways to brighten up our community. We try to shed a good light on it and help people to enjoy visiting and living here. We do this for free, writing and creating stories and content to hopefully brighten your day just a little bit. But this time, we just really need to talk about the ugliness that's taking over Jellico.

You see it, WE ALL SEE IT! So why aren't we standing up together to do something about it? It's time people, it's time to build our army and start fighting back. We can do it! We can make a difference and promote a change if we'll just try. We're not helpless, our voices can and will be heard but we need to stand up and shout.

Call the mayor, keep calling, call every single day if you have to. If he shuts you out then go higher and call the state representative and keep calling him too. Send letters, write one every day. DONT STOP!

Jellico Mayor's Office,

410 S Main St, Jellico, TN 37762

(423) 784-8495

Call the local and State Police

Increased police presence is a surefire way to help reduce or eliminate drug use in the community. Calling the local and state police and asking for increased presence in your community due to drug activity is a very wise thing to do, and if you are concerned for your own safety and want to remain anonymous, you can tell them that you're afraid and want to remain anonymous, of course they'll know who you are but they won't tell anyone else.

I have heard people claim that they have called and got no response and nobody ever showed up. I don't know about this but if they don't respond or listen to you then call the county or the state police and tell them that you're not being heard. Keep calling, they have to answer the phone, they can't ignore you. It's the law. Your tax dollar are paying them to keep you safe.

Jellico City Police (423) 784-6123

Talk to neighbors and business owners about the drug problem in the community

Finding others who agree that drugs are a problem in the community and that something needs to be done about it is like dropping a stone into a lake – the ripples will spread and affect others. Furthermore, you may find out useful information that can be passed on to the police, like certain drug-dealing or drug-using patterns that others have observed. Go straight to store owners / managers and tell them about any drug problems that you witness. Keep calling them too!

Talk to landlords

A landlord whose property is being used for drug activities may be unaware of such activities, and may be interested in taking action if they are made aware. You can go to the Tax Appraisal District to find the owner of the property and how to contact them. If they don't do something to help you then call state and county welfare agencies and file reports.

Start a “Neighborhood Watch” program

Others likely share your concerns about drug use in your community. The local police can provide Neighborhood Watch signs that can be posted at members’ properties, and can support Neighborhood Watch activities. It is within all of our rights to do this. You might reach a few deaf ears, but you can make this happen if you really and truly want it.

Maintain working streetlights

Dark streets and alleys may feel safer for drug dealers and users, so ensuring that all streetlights are properly working are important in reducing and erasing community drug use. Call the electric company if you notice any lights in your neighborhood not working properly. THEY HAVE TO FIX IT!

Jellico Electric & Water System (423) 784-8431

Contact Newspapers and News Stations

Contacting such places creates a public spotlight right over your community. It also pressures city officials to listen to you and to start acting on the problems. Also, when people notice that they're being watched they tend to start moving on or making less of a public appearance.

Create a community effort against drugs

The city of McAlester, Oklahoma recently put on an event called “Take McAlester Back”. The message: City residents are taking the community back from drug use.

There is no magic wand to stop drug use, but people do get healthier and communities do get stronger and safer when we work together at the local level. The “Take McAlester Back” campaign proves that a community can pull together to reduce and eliminate drug use, and that such efforts are important and nationally recognized.

I truly love our little town. I know that a lot of you still love her as well. All we're asking is that those of you who still love your hometown, start standing up and fighting for her. Jellico Tennessee deserves it. You deserve it. WE ALL DESERVE IT!