Glenbard Parent Series to present brother of Chris Farley at panel on addiction

Glenbard Parent Series: Navigating Healthy Families will present Dr. Timothy Fong and author Tom Farley as they discuss “Growing Up With Chris Farley: A Story of Addiction, Love and Forgiveness, What You Need to Know” at 7 p.m. Nov. 30.

The special hybrid event will be presented on Zoom and in person at Glenbard West High School, 670 Crescent Blvd. in Glen Ellyn. The program is offered in partnership with the DuPage County Health Department Prevention Leadership Team, NAMI DuPage and Serenity House. Go to glenbardgps.org for information and the link to the webinar.

A community resource fair with giveaways will precede the program at 6:30 p.m. at Glenbard West. Those who attend in person can enter a prize drawing for fun family prizes.

To be placed on a reminder list for GPS events or to submit a question in advance, email Gilda Ross, Glenbard District 87 student and community projects coordinator, at gilda_ross@glenbard.org.

People are invited to join GPS for one of a select few in-person programs featuring subject matter experts on prevention, family connectedness and strategies for raising healthy, happy teens.

Farley will share how his brother struggled with addiction, and how it impacted his family, a news release stated. He advocates that parents are the first line of defense when it comes to teen drug use. When caregivers have knowledge about common drugs; know their effects on the mind and body; and recognize the symptoms of their use, they are able to outline the risks to young people.

Chris Farley was a comedian and actor best known for his characters on “Saturday Night Live” and in films including “Tommy Boy” and “Black Sheep.” He died in 1997 because of substance misuse, the release stated.

His older brother comes to GPS to raise awareness about addiction and mental health. Tom Farley is an advocate with Rosecrance Health Network. Previously, he ran the Chris Farley Foundation, which delivers prevention messages to adolescents. In 2008, Farley co-authored The New York Times bestselling book “The Chris Farley Show, a Biography in Three Acts.”

Fong is a 1990 graduate of Glenbard West. He is a professor of psychiatry at the Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior at UCLA and part of the faculty leadership of the UCLA Cannabis Research Initiative.

CEU’s for nurses, school social workers and counselors will be offered to those who register at tinyurl.com/23t8w676.