Organizers know that it will more than likely be the promise of pizza and a possible iPod that will attract students to an event. But those same organizers also know that the information they hear can change a life.

Troup County Prevention Coalition and Twin Cedars will present a town-hall meeting on preventing underage drinking from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Monday at Best Western Lafayette Garden Inn. The free event is geared for both parents and their teenagers. Pizza and soft drinks will be provided and door prizes will be given, including iPods.

“We will be talking specifically about the underage drinking issues in Troup County,” said Britt Wood, project coordinator for Troup County Prevention Coalition.

Information culled from the Georgia Student Health Survey - a survey given annually to every sixth-, eighth-, 10th- and 12th-grade student in public schools - shows that the average age a Troup County teenager takes a first drink is 12.5 years old.

“That’s alarming. We want to address that,” Wood said.

The other issue that will be addressed is that 42 percent of Troup County’s 12th-graders who drink get their alcohol at home.

“The good news is that 74 percent of Troup County youth said they believe alcohol is harmful,” Wood said.

At the town hall meeting, community leaders will talk about how drinking leads to risky behavior, the law enforcement side of underage drinking and brain research on teenager drinking.

Speakers include Judge Jeanette Little, LaGrange police Capt. Mike Pheil, Ricky Bolden, Jayne Pauley, Jane Gannon and Kenneth Genova.

Sherri Brown can be reached at sbrown@ lagrangenews.com or (706) 884-7311, Ext. 240.