Virginia ABC Celebrates 2025 Wheeler Award Recipients

MECHANICSVILLE, Va. – An educational campaign on the dangers of alcohol and substance use has earned a youth coalition a $500 grant from the Virginia Alcoholic Beverage Control Authority (ABC).

High school students from the Horizon Behavioral Health HYPE Club, based in Lynchburg, earned the 2025 Wheeler Award for their efforts throughout the 2024-25 school year to educate student athletes with a “Protect Your Game” campaign.

The award is given annually to a school or organization participating in Virginia ABC’s Youth Alcohol and Drug Abuse Prevention Project (YADAPP). The team members, who attend E.C. Glass High School, sought to educate not only student athletes about the facts and dangers of substance use, but the parents and coaches who support them and influence their decisions. This “Protect Your Game” model takes advantage of the natural leadership roles of high school athletes, who promote an overall culture of positive peer youth leadership.

Kicking off with a school assembly attended by all spring student athletes, the HYPE Club, with the support of Horizon Behavioral Health and Central Virginia Addiction and Recovery Resources (CVARR), delivered an educational message that gave special attention to raising awareness of the risks surrounding alcohol, marijuana, nicotine and prescription drugs.

Later, the HYPE Club reinforced this positive message with a resource table at a varsity soccer game, providing giveaways and engaging with peers and community members to promote substance freestyle lifestyles.

Established in 1986, the Wheeler Award honors Morris and Billie Wheeler for their dedication to youth substance use prevention. The Wheelers’ daughter, Sandy, was killed by a drunk driver in 1981. For nearly 40 years, the Wheelers supported the prevention efforts of Virginia ABC and other organizations to promote youth leadership and prevent drunk driving.

YADAPP is a peer leadership program that begins each summer when high schools and community groups send teams of four students, assisted by an adult sponsor, to a five-day kickoff conference. Teams broaden their knowledge of substance use prevention and work together to create strategic prevention plans known as Strategies to Act Now (STAN) Plans, which are implemented during the following school year.

“As recipients of the Wheeler Award have before them, the Horizon Behavioral Health HYPE Club showed how a simple idea can lead to positive impacts that are incalculable,” Virginia ABC CEO Dale Farino said. “We applaud the students’ efforts and support their path to achieve success and their continued work to build a stronger community and peer network.”

Virginia ABC also named five YADAPP teams as winners of mini grants for their standout STAN Plans. Schools or organizations represented by the student teams will receive $250 to support the implementation of their substance use prevention efforts. Mini-grant recipients include teams representing the following schools and communities:

• Cave Spring High School (Roanoke)
• Community Builders Network Team 3 (Hampton)
• Horizon Behavioral Health HYPE Club (Lynchburg)
• Newport News Mayor’s Youth Commission (Newport News)
• Washington-Liberty High School (Arlington)

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The Virginia Alcoholic Beverage Control Authority (ABC) is a major source of revenue for the Commonwealth, contributing more than $3.0 billion to the general fund in the last five years. Virginia ABC currently operates approximately 400 state stores and provides alcohol education and prevention programs for people of all ages. Its Bureau of Law Enforcement oversees ABC licensed establishments across the Commonwealth. Now marking its 91st year, ABC remains committed to progress and innovation in carrying out its vision of bringing good spirits and excellent service to Virginia.