The county commissioners made the right decision when they voted to retain most of the money for the Chemical Dependency Center. There’s no question that they have had to make some tough choices in the past several months&045; it’s reassuring to see they value the family.

The county was looking to cut $20,000 from the center, which would have eliminated programming to help young people with chemical abuse issues. Commissioners reduced the cut to $7,500 Tuesday, an amount the CDC can take from reserves without causing the center to close.

But the CDC would have lost much more than the $20,000 because some grants are tied to the center’s ability to provide services to youths.

Perhaps the greatest cost &045; to families &045; isn’t calculable and would have long-term affects.

The adage, &uot;an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure,&uot; has been confirmed in more than one instance and money spent on kids is always money well-spent. Working with chemical dependency problems in kids early on helps prevent future problems when they are adults.

With their vote, commissioners reaffirmed their support of the family.