Jim Priest, the Executive Director of FATE, has been named the Preventionist of the Year by the American Athletic Institute and the national Life of an Athlete program.
“Jim’s total dedication to the OKLOA program has made so much happen in this past year in Oklahoma. The materials they have generated and the professionalism of the program has already started to impact his state,” ” It is hard to believe how far they have come in such a short time in OK. said John Underwood AAI Director
“Like many Oklahomans, I had a general awareness that our state faced a problem with drugs, but in talking with law enforcement and district attorneys across the state I have come to a much deeper understanding about the scope and impact of the problem we face with both alcohol and other substances”, says Priest. “Alcohol and drugs take a terrible toll on individuals and families but also economically cripples our state in many ways. In talking with law enforcement across the state I have learned that approximately 80% of the crime in Oklahoma is either directly or indirectly related to substance abuse. Underage drinking alone costs our state over $900 million per year. It causes our prisons to be overcrowded, rips families apart and hurts our businesses and our economy. I decided to try to do something about it through FATE.”
Jim has been married to his wife Diane for 34 years and they have two adult children Amanda and Spencer. Jim was born in Syracuse, New York and graduated from Houghton College and Syracuse University Law School before moving to Oklahoma in 1980. Jim will be honored at the AAI Summer Session in Lake Placid, NY in June, 2012.
