It is the opening ceremony for the annual Youth Alcohol & Drug Abuse Prevention Project conference. Inside, teens from across the state are raising the roof.

The energy cannot, nor should it be, contained by mere walls.

They have come to Longwood University to learn how to take a leadership role in keeping their schools and communities alcohol and drug free. Weighty issues, but ones that are, nonetheless, taught in a connecting way.

It is the 31st year of YADAPP, and the 31st year Morris and Billie Wheeler have attended. Meeting the two and hearing their story is both heart-wrenching and inspiring.

In 1981, their 19-year-old daughter, Sandy, was traveling with five friends in a Volkswagen in West Virginia when a driver of a Ford LTD came around the mountain and swerved into their lane. All six were killed.

No parent, of course, can go through such trauma and not be changed. The Wheelers, freely relating their tragedy, are in the business of changing hearts and minds. They are founders of YADAPP.

YADAPP, according to its website, “is an annual summer leadership conference empowering teens to keep their schools and communities alcohol and drug free by taking positive peer leadership roles.”

The youth-led program has been held at Longwood the past 15 years.

From the program’s very beginnings, the Wheelers have found teens willing to listen and wanting them to come to their schools to tell their tragic story — one they called “pain, grief and tears.” They have seen the Virginia Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control program’s impact on the youth emotionally, physically and even spiritually.

For some of them, Morris said, “it was almost a total transformation.”

He, of course, has many positive stories to tell about the teens. No one stays with something for 31 years that doesn’t work. This works.

Inside of Jarman Auditorium, “Lean On Me” is playing to a hearty beat, and the sound of teens erupts through an opened balcony door.

“Oh my, yes,” Billie laughs, when asked if they love the energy.

“We thrive on it,” Morris adds.

Cumberland County sent two teams to this year’s event; Prince Edward and Buckingham were not represented. Though there is interest, there is a cost for the teens and adult leaders to stay for the five-day event. Morris believes the finances hold down the numbers.

It would be nice to see more local teens participate.

Prince Edward’s Sheriff’s Office sent teams in years past funded by the DARE campaign, but those monies have to be raised from fundraisers. A business that donates $500, noted Lt. Sonya Walker of the Prince Edward Sheriff’s Office, could sponsor 3-4 children for the week.

It a good idea to water a seed. One never knows; it could produce a hundredfold.

“… The work you all will do this week and the example you will set when you turn home will be a beacon for community-wide change,” Virginia First Lady Dorothy McAuliffe told the youth on the opening day of the YADAPP event.  “But, make no mistake, leading by example is only part of what you’ve been called to do. After this week, you will be expected to follow your words with deeds. Learning to make healthful choices isn’t enough. It will soon be your responsibility to take what you learned and inspire others in your community to make those same choices.”

It would be a wonderful investment to send some area teens next year.

One that could save a life someday.

One that could save a child.

Rob Chapman is a staff writer for The Farmville Herald. His email address is rob.chapman@farmvilleherald.com.