First Lady Mary Easley

First Lady Mary Easley's main initiatives are preventing and reducing underage drinking, assisting military families, and promoting and supporting the arts. Mrs. Easley serves as one of four national co-chairs of The Leadership to Keep Children Alcohol Free, a unique coalition of Governors' spouses, federal agencies, and public and private organizations that engages public policy makers and opinion leaders, nationally, to raise awareness about the risks associated with childhood alcohol use.  As part of this initiative, she travels throughout North Carolina addressing schools, professional organizations, alcohol prevention coalitions, parent organizations, and volunteer groups.  In early 2007, Mrs. Easley joined the Acting Surgeon General in Washington, D.C. to announce a national "Call to ...

Mrs. Easley’s Drought-Busting Tips

View Mrs. Easley's Drought-Busting Tips PSAs by clicking below. 1. Check Pipes Leading into House for Leaks; Turn off All Water and Read Meter 2. Maximizing Water Efficiency Performing Household Chores

N.C. First Lady Seeks Head Start in Curbing Underage Drinking

Dale Neal, Asheville Citizen-Times

Underage drinking is more than a phase to be tolerated by adults — it is a public health crisis costing billions of dollars in damages and lost lives, North Carolina’s first lady Mary Easley said Tuesday. “You know as well as I do that if you begin alcohol education in high school that’s too late,” Easley said at the N.C. Association of ABC Boards annual summer conference held at the Grove Park Inn. “Middle school is not too early,” said Easley, who has been active in Leadership to Keep Children Alcohol Free, an initiative of governors’ spouses across the nation. At least four Western North Carolina counties with a higher percentage of alcohol-related crashes and deaths have been targeted among 18 counties in ...

First Lady Visits Mocksville School

First Lady Mary Easley toured Cornatzer Elementary School in Mocksville. During her visit she observed a Reading Achievement Program classroom, interactive classrooms and read to a kindergarten class.

N.C.’s First Lady Speaks Out about Underage Drinking

WILMINGTON -- During the Azalea Festival weekend, nearly 300 people were arrested for underage drinking. But the problem is not limited to special events. The statistics regarding young people and alcohol are staggering and continuing to grow. It's a concern for all parents, including North Carolina's First Lady, Mary Easley, who says parents need to get involved in their children's lives, now more than ever before. Watch the full interview at http://www.wect.com/Global/story.asp?S=6420793. WECT News

First Lady featured in WECT Report “Teens Busted for Underage Drinking”

WILMINGTON -- A couple of kegs and a case of beer weren't the source of a good time at one recent get-together. Instead, they were tapped as evidence when Alcohol Law Enforcement agents busted an underage party. Authorities wrote tickets and confiscated the source of a growing and undeniable problem among Wilmington's youth: alcohol. One high school senior says about 90 percent of people she knows drink or have gotten drunk. "If you haven't experienced alcohol, you haven't experienced high school," said Erin Spencer. It may sound like an exaggeration, but the statistics reflect her assertion. Last year alone, authorities in New Hanover County wrote 500 tickets for underage possession of alcohol. For every one of those, ALE estimates 200 went unnoticed - which could ...

Mary Easley on North Carolina People

Choose your preferred video format to watch Bill Friday's interview with First Lady Mary Easley.

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New Push to Stop Drinking and Driving

WTVD March 19, 2007 Raleigh - First Lady Mary Easley urged students at Wakefield High School to drive safely as she kicked off Operation Drive to Live 2007. The campaign is a safety initiative sponsored by the N.C. Department of Crime Control and Public Safety and the N.C. Highway Patrol to reduce traffic collisions and fatalities among teen drivers. Gov. Mike Easley has declared March 19-23 as "Teen Drive to Live Week" to encourage all teenagers to drive responsibly. Students at Wakefield know the dangers of drinking and driving all to well, but the hope is that the campaign kicking off Monday will finally drive the point home. Last year, four Wakefield High School students were killed in one accident off the 64 ...

N.C. First Lady Helps Launch Campaign Against Underage Drinking

WRAL-TV, March 6, 2007 Raleigh — North Carolina First Lady Mary Easley on Tuesday joined the nations' highest medical officer to announce a nationwide campaign to help reduce underage drinking. Acting U.S. Surgeon General Kenneth P. Moritsugu has issued a booklet entitled "The Surgeon General’s Call to Action to Prevent and Reduce Underage Drinking," which outlines ways to help educate parents and children about the dangers. Among them, Easley said, are tips for parents on talking and listening to teens about the issue. "When I say talk, I don't mean lecture to them or preach to them," Easley said. "I mean, ...

Art Museum Expanding

Associated Press 9/14/2006 9:51 PM RALEIGH -- The North Carolina Museum of Art unveiled plans Thursday for an expansion that incorporates stainless steel, glass and natural light in a plan that brings together art and nature. The 127,000-square-foot building will be home not only to the museum's existing permanent collection, but also casts of 22 bronze sculptures by Auguste Rodin, including "The Thinker" and "The Kiss." The building "is not about architectural bravado," museum director Larry Wheeler said. "It's not about soaring flourishes that we associate often with public buildings, in particular cultural expressions in architecture today. "It's a beautiful, quiet, simple place where our people can come together. They can come alone. They can find peace. They can let their spirits soar. They can ...

First Lady Speaks at National Guard Family Readiness Group Workshop

First Lady Mary Easley today commended more than 40 N.C. National Guard Family Readiness Group volunteers for their efforts to support the families of North Carolina's soldiers and airmen, as well as the overall mission of the National Guard.  She delivered the keynote address at a three-day volunteer workshop held on Fort Fisher at Kure Beach.  "Strong support networks within the military community are essential to the success of our Guardsmen serving at home and overseas," said Easley.  "Family Readiness Group volunteers go beyond the call of duty to keep all the families in their unit in touch, informed and involved.  They are the glue that holds the North Carolina National Guard families together." The workshop was sponsored by the National Guard ...