KATIE LUMPKIN

The tragic loss of her brother due to underage drinking has made Katie Lumpkin an activist and advocate for reducing underage drinking in our society. Katie created and implemented an underage drinking awareness program for 5th through 12th grades in various schools throughout Georgia and at no cost to the schools recently introduced this program in Alabama, Florida, New York, and South Carolina.

Katie is now expanding her program to reach college level students as well through a 15 minute video that she produced and directed called “Think Again.” This video tells the story of how her brother lost his life because of underage drinking and gives current facts about the effects of alcohol on the teenage brain.

This video has aired on two local public access channels reaching thousands of homes during prom season, which is an especially tempting time of the year for young adults to drink. The video has been introduced to all 50 states and is being implemented in five of those states so far. Katie’s goal is for “Think Again” to be a part of every middle and high school in the United States. Her passion for this cause has motivated her to speak to over 1,000 students in schools, clubs and after school programs throughout the state. She has also filmed a Public Service Announcement that has reached thousands of homes locally.

In April 2003, she authored a keg registration bill that was adopted by the city of Thomasville to make it more difficult for minors to obtain alcohol. As a statewide spokesperson, Katie would like to ensure that Georgia’s Keg Registration Law is implemented in every city and county of Georgia. She has contacted the State School Superintendent of every state in the United States to help to spread her message nationwide. She is working to place more responsibility on merchants by advocating for more compliance checks to help decrease the number of minors that are able to purchase their own alcohol.

Katie Lumpkin is an excellent role model for today’s youth and she stands strong in her belief that one person can make a difference. Katie has taken a personal tragedy and turned it into a mission of hope, dedication, and community service.