Statewide Chair Mary McLellan Heritage Community Services Regional Chairs Mariscia Cooper (Pee Dee) Charlie Lybrand (Lowcountry) Lenna Neill (Upstate) Rev. Randy Riddle (Grand Strand) Dr. Roger Rollins (CSRA) Charlotte Valentine-Green (Ace Basin)   Advisory Council Eugene Bacote Darlington School District Dr. Vera Bailey Hilton Head Preg. Care Center Pamela Berry Colleton Fire and Rescue Dr. Vonda Calcutt Lowcountry Ctr. Diabetes Sen. Chip Campsen Charleston/Berkeley Rev. Chuck Coward Charleston Outreach Robin Crosby Colleton County Ligure Ellington Ret.Capt. Charleston City Police Dr. Randy Goings Chiropractic Physician Faye Hill Lowcountry Pregnancy Center & SC Association Pregnancy Care Centers WC Hoecke Fatherhood Practioner Leroy Lewis Upward Bound at Cof C Norman L. Moore, Jr. Colonel, USAFR(Ret) Cyndi Mosteller Comm. for Higher Education Alexia Newman Carolina Pregnancy Center Fred Payne Marriage Savers of Upstate Jerry & Barbara Seymour R& R Marriage Min. Ronald Shoupe Colleton County Dr. A. V. Strong A Better Way, Inc. (Gang Out) Dr. Robert Thomas Pulmonary Medicine Pastor Phil Thrailkill St. Luke UMC Hartsville Kelly Walker Upstate Fatherhood Coalition	June 7, 2010 SC Healthy Family Formation Coalition E-News!   Not everyone will choose to wait until marriage to have sex.  We get that.     Yet, more and more teens are deciding to delay sex, (or stop having sex) which means less pregnancy, STDs/HIV, less emotional and psychological distress, higher graduation rates, and more time to focus on future educational, career and family goals.    Ultimately, it can mean breaking cycles of generational poverty and starting a new family tree!   So, why was there no excitement in the media last week when national studies revealed that 72% of girls and 71% of boys between 15-17 years of age were less likely to have ever had sex?     Shouldn’t we be happy about that? Most high school students are abstaining!   The report clearly showed that it is the 18-19 year age group, those emancipated legally and from parents, where 60% of girls and 65% of boys become sexually active.     The report also showed that:    Since 1991, the proportion of high school students who have ever had sex dropped from 54% to 46% in 2009. (not everyone is having sex)   The most prevalent reason for not having sex was that it was against their religion or morals.   Of those in the 15-19 age group, 79% of girls and 87% of boys used contraception the first time they had sex.  And, most sexually active teens use contraception, just not consistently. (this data included the college aged teens, so it skews the results for high school)       Safe Sex Message Stalled   The Planned Parenthood/SIECUS networks used the report to continue their assault on abstinence education claiming that progress in preventing teen sex has stalled.   Are they disappointed that so many teen are choosing to abstain?  Their mantra continues to be:   Teach more and more adolescents more and more Safe Sex!   Perhaps, what has stalled or become stagnant is the Safe Sex message!  After all, Safe Sex is 30 years old and even though pregnancy rates are lower, the STD/HIV rates are still too high.   We suspect that the Safe Sex message is more about promoting teen sex as normal rather than preventing it.  This report debunks the fact that teen sex is a given norm for high school.       Abstinence Works in Middle and High Schools   Whether it is because of abstinence education and/or parents doing their jobs and talking to their children about their values and morals, abstinence is working quite well.   In fact, abstinence education needs to be mandated and funded in all middle and high schools!  Delaying sexual activity as long as possible for teens has only benefits for individuals, families and society.   It isn’t until teens leave home that many succumb to the culture and begin having sex.  Freshman orientation is where most teens are encouraged to practice Safe Sex, told where they can get free condoms, and are exposed to the dangers of alcohol, drugs, and the hook-up culture.     We have not met many teens that do not already know about Safe Sex practices. It’s like teaching typing or keyboarding to kids these days.  It is their culture. They already know it. Why put so much emphasis on a message that most kids generally already know?   What many do not receive after high school is encouragement to practice abstinence until they are mature, and in a mutually monogamous life-long relationship, such as marriage. This is the message they need to continually hear from their parents, college administrators, professors, faith leaders and the media.  Not Safe Sex.   Follow the SC-HFF Coalition on Twitter! Join the Heritage Keepers® Facebook Cause
	The South Carolina Healthy Family Formation Coalition (SC HFF Coalition) is organized and staffed by Heritage Community Services. The SC HFF Coalition promotes child and family well-being by providing opportunities for statewide communication about such issues as: adolescent pregnancy, unwed childbearing, fatherlessness, sexual exploitation of our youth, dating violence and domestic violence, child abuse and neglect, gang activity and youth violence.    Coalition members support healthy family formation initiatives that integrate character-based life skills, teen pregnancy prevention with an emphasis on abstinence-centered education, and the importance of fidelity-within-marriage.   Together we can impact our culture so that forming healthy families becomes a norm, rather than the exception, for South Carolina. Please, forward this E-News to interested friends, family and colleagues and ask them to consider joining the Coalition. Join/Subscribe Unsubscribe PRIVACY POLICY: Information you share will never be sold, rented, or given to any third party. Contact Mary McLellan , Statewide Chairman (843)654-7740 ext.122