Nate didn't start drinking alcohol until he was 16, but it didn't remain a hobby for long.

"It progressed to a lifestyle and then a necessity," he said. "I was going to Northern Illinois University and studying global business, but I lost hope for my life. I didn't want to live very long because I didn't see the point."

Today, at age 18 and living in a halfway house after 45 days of residential treatment, the soft-spoken teenager has hope again.

"I plan to go on to school once I'm ready, once I'm spiritually fit, and become an addiction counselor. I'm happy and healthy, and I don't want to die."

Nate, who did not give his last name, told his story Wednesday night to keep other teenagers from making the same mistake he did. His audience was about 60 people who attended a town meeting organized by the Douglas County Regional Prevention Group at Tuscola High School to discuss the problem of underage drinking.

A similar meeting called by the DeWitt County Human Resource Center on Thursday night drew more than 30 citizens to Madison Hall in Clinton, and another meeting will take place in Decatur this week.

These Central Illinois communities are among 52 in Illinois that received a $500 stipend from the U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration and the Illinois Department of Human Services Division of Community Health and Prevention to conduct such meetings.

The Tuscola event also featured a panel discussion moderated by Robert Reese of WCIA-TV, CBS-Champaign.

Responding to a question from Brad Heinz of Tuscola, high school Principal Kyle Ransom said he doesn't think underage drinking has gotten more prevalent but that the choices of substances to abuse have gotten more numerous.

"It's not just alcohol and marijuana. We're talking about meth, we're talking about inhalants, we're talking about kids overdosing on Ritalin," he said. "We're also talking about drugs that are more potent than they were in the '80s."

Douglas County Sheriff Charlie McGrew added that schools and law enforcement also are doing more to put a stop to underage drinking than in the past.

"There was a time when the officer would just make the kid pour out the beer, but I feel that has not accomplished one thing," he said.

Ellen Lynch of Atwood asked if the concept of Drug Abuse Resistance Education could be extended to older students, and Ransom said another program has been investigated but might be too expensive for one school district to purchase on its own.

Chief Probation Officer Paul Wisovaty said a peer-driven education program would be more effective with older children than one led by law enforcement officers.

Other panelists were Douglas County State's Attorney Kevin Nolan and prevention specialist Angela Dirks of the Central East Alcoholism and Drug Council.

Also as part of this public awareness initiative, the I Sing the Body Electric coalition will co-produce "Bring it Home: Parents Start Talking" to air on WEIU-TV in Charleston at 6 p.m. Wednesday and April 18. Last year's program, "Start Talking Before They Start Drinking," will be rebroadcast at 6 p.m. Tuesday and April 17.

Both programs also will air on Tuesday and April 25 on YOUR 13, a Web site channel that can be accessed at www.your13.com. "Start Talking" will be shown at 7 p.m. and "Bring It Home" at 8 p.m.

According to the Illinois Department of Human Services, more than 48,000 Illinoisans, including 3,100 youth, received treatment for alcohol addiction from state-funded programs last year.

More than two-thirds of Illinois teenagers report use of alcohol and one quarter of high school seniors admit they have driven a car while under the influence of alcohol.

Half of all fatal automobile crashes involving teenagers are alcohol-related.

Theresa Churchill can be reached at tchurchill@herald-review.com or 421-7978.