Students have banded together to provide an environment for sober events.

Amanda Levy, Anna Smith and Mike Hofstetter, social work graduate students, created Sober Chico in February. The group is meant to give students an avenue to hang out without drug or alcohol use.

Chico’s reputation for partying and binge drinking is problematic because it supports an unhealthy relationship with substance abuse, Smith said.

The students want to build a community where anyone can come and not feel pressure to drink or use drugs, she said.

“Sober Chico is not just for those in recovery from addiction,” Smith said. “It is for any adult interested in having fun without drug or alcohol use.”

Students don’t need to directly encounter issues with alcoholism to be a part of this group, Levy said. The group hopes students will realize that activities can be fun without alcohol through connections with members.

“We’re just hoping to provide an opportunity for students,” Levy said. “We’re really looking to build a community.”

Groups like Narcotics Anonymous and Alcoholics Anonymous have meetings but don’t host activities or find other like-minded people in the community, she said.

“As far as we’ve looked, there’s no group that’s providing these kinds of events,” Levy said. “There are support groups and stuff but no just fun events for people to go to.”

The group isn’t affiliated with other organizations and doesn’t have a hidden agenda, she said. The members just want to have fun with people.

“We’re hoping that students and people realize that they can make these connections and make these choices,” Levy said. “We definitely want this to be a lasting group.”

Dominique Diaz can be reached at [email protected] or @dominiqueldiaz on Twitter.