ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1995, Roanoke Times
DATE: Wednesday, December 13, 1995 TAG: 9512130076
SECTION: EXTRA PAGE: 12 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: ALMENA HUGHES FOOD EDITOR
Julia West, a long-time member of the Roanoke Woman's Christian Temperance Union, seemed surprised when I called to thank her for sending in some nonalcoholic recipe suggestions. She said she had no favorites among them. She just thought they were nice and a necessary inclusion for entertaining during this season of parties and get-togethers.
West until August was co-president of the Roanoke temperance union. The retiree is still the union's state treasurer, and is active in her church, her residential organization and the Melrose Towers Civic League.
She said that the WCTU is still dedicated to the original principles espoused at its founding in 1874: the efficacy of prayer; abstention from tobacco and illegal recreational drugs; opposition to gambling and abortion; and endorsement of chastity. Its main focus remains on educating the public about the ill effects of alcohol - and, these days, other drugs as well - and on promoting the positives associated with their absence. WCTU's members - and certainly the mostly older members of the 35-member Roanoke Union - are hardly the aggressive, hatchet-wielding ``Carrie Nation'' types often portrayed, West laughed.
``We have handouts that we supply to schools and organizations,'' she said, referring to numerous religious and nonreligious pamphlets, booklets and posters from the WCTU publishing house, Signal Press in Evanston, Ill.
The union, AAA Virginia, Mothers Against Drunk Driving and other organizations generally agree on how to best prevent drunken and drugged driving accidents:
Designate a driver who will not drink and who will be responsible for transporting revelers who do drink. Consider giving the driver a small token of appreciation. Encourage car-pooling.
Serve a variety of beverages, including several nonalcoholic options, and control the amount of alcohol served.
Divert guests' attention from alcohol and slow their drinking rate with lively talk, music and party games.
Serve protein-rich and starchy foods throughout the evening to help retard alcohol absorption.
Put away the alcohol when it gets late and serve coffee and dessert instead. Don't be fooled, though. Neither coffee, cold showers nor anything else will lower blood alcohol levels or improve motor skills. Only time will sober inebriated guests.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says that every 30 minutes, one person dies in an alcohol-related crash and one out of every three people killed is not the drunken driver or pedestrian.
This is a big season for alcohol awareness, West said. But preventing drunken and drugged driving truly is a year-round concern.
The Roanoke WCTU meets on the third Monday of each month at 10:30 a.m. at Emmanuel Wesleyan Church, Hershberger Road Northwest, Roanoke. Anyone is welcome to attend. For information, call state president Clarabelle Hopkins at 362-7844.
CRANBERRY-ALMOND PUNCH see microfilm for recipe
LENGTH: Medium: 62 linesby CNB