FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: September 19, 2022

Contact: Natalie Golub, 973-382-4560, natalie@drugfreenj.org

Partnership for a Drug-Free New Jersey Claims Six Awards from
the NJ Ad Club Jersey Awards  

MILLBURN, NJ — The Partnership for a Drug-Free New Jersey (PDFNJ) received six awards at the 2022 NJ Ad Club Jersey Awards Ceremony held on September 14 at The Grove in Cedar Grove, NJ

The NJ Ad Club is the oldest and largest trade association in New Jersey and this year. This year marked its 54^th annual award program, which showcased the best advertising and marketing efforts in the state. PDFNJ received a total of six awards: three first-place and three second-place.

PDFNJ substance use prevention public service campaigns and programs that earned first-place honors include:

• Public Service category for the Knock Out Opioid Abuse Learning Series Webinars which is a branch of PDFNJ’s Knock Out Opioid Abuse Day initiative.  The Learning Series is a collaboration between PDFNJ and the Office of the New Jersey Coordinator of Addiction Responses and Enforcement Strategies (NJ CARES), which is responsible for overseeing addiction-fighting efforts across the New Jersey Office of the Attorney General. The webinars focused on various aspects of the opioid epidemic and its impact on New Jersey and the nation.
• Out-of-Home Transit Rail category for Spanish Language Masking PSA that focusing on educating the public about the dual health concerns affecting New Jersey and the country; the COVID-19 pandemic and the opioid epidemic
• Out-of-Home Transit Shelters category for Marjiuana & Teens Campaign for the “Track” Public Service Announcement that educates New Jersey residents about the dangers of teen use of marijuana.

PDFNJ earned second place in the following categories:

• Public Relations Special Event category for Knock Out Opioid Abuse Day, held each year on October 6. Designated by Governor Murphy as a permanent day of prevention education and awareness to shine a light on the opioid crisis impacting thousands of New Jersey residents and families. The day brings thousands of New Jersey residents to stand up and raise awareness of the opioid epidemic.  To learn more about how you can get involved this year, please click here.
• Out of Home Transit Bus category for the Marijuana & Teens Campaign “Dream School” Public Service Announcement that educates New Jersey residents about the potential dangers of teen marijuana use
• Printed Materials Pocket Folder for the Fourth Grade Folder Artwork Competition which challenges New Jersey fourth grade students to create anti-drug themed artwork around the theme, “Fun Things to Do Instead of Drugs”. The winning artwork is featured on 40,000 folders distributed to classroom throughout the state. Entries are being accepted for the 2022-2023 school year.  To enter please click here.

To date the Partnership for a Drug-Free New Jersey has won 217 advertising and public relations awards from national, regional and statewide media organizations.

“The Partnership for a Drug-Free New Jersey is proud to receive these awards recognizing our efforts in spreading prevention messages to New Jersey residents,” said Angelo Valente, Executive Director of PDFNJ. “The goal is to raise awareness of these important topics to help save lives.”

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Best known for its statewide substance use prevention advertising campaign, the Partnership for a Drug-Free New Jersey is a private not-for-profit coalition of professionals from the communications, corporate and government communities whose collective mission is to reduce demand for illicit drugs in New Jersey through media communication. To date, more than $200 million in broadcast time and print space has been donated to the Partnership’s New Jersey campaign, making it the largest public service advertising campaign in New Jersey’s history. Since its inception, the Partnership has garnered 217 advertising and public relations awards from national, regional and statewide media organizations.