The Tyrone and Bellwood Antis school districts are celebrating Red Ribbon Week.
It’s set aside every October as a public awareness campaign to alert the public to the dangers of drug abuse and to promote a drug free society. The state attorney general provides red ribbons through his office and encourages people to wear them as a pledge to be drug free.
Locally, the week is being recognized at schools throughout the area including Saint Matthews Elementary, Tyrone Elementary and next week at Myers elementary in the Bellwood Antis school district.
“I’m happy to be involved” said former Tyrone High quarterback Tyler Mertiff, the guest speaker of Tyrone’s event.
He stressed the importance of good role models when he was growing up in avoiding drugs as a young person. Mertiff now plays at IUP and was back in Tyrone for the Thursday morning assembly.
Sandi Smith of the Nevada based Home Run Against Drugs took the time to thank the sponsors involved in the program and was glad her presentation coincided with Red Ribbon Week. Smith is a local team manager based out of Hollidaysburg. Red Ribbon Week was started back in the 1980s to recognize the work law enforcement officers play in the battle against drugs. The week was designated nationally after the death of a federal agent and former Marine during a drug battle in Mexico. Enrique “Kiki” Camerena was killed in 1985 and the national Red Ribbon Week was established a couple of years late in his honor.
The attorney general organizes programs and activities throughout the state to discuss the dangers of illegal drugs and also to talk about what communities can do to address the drug problem. The attorney general is also using their website to bring together different resources about drug abuse and drug enforcement. You can read about the dangers of specific drugs on the website as well as the early warnings signs of drug abuse. The site also provides information to help parents talk to their children about drug abuse. The site even provides information about efforts to stem the flow of illegal drugs into Pennsylvania. The information can be found at www.attorneygeneral.gov/pei/Red Ribbon/index.htm.
“Attorney General Mike Fisher is emphasizing the battle against heroin,” said spokesperson Sean Connolly.
There has been a tremendous rise in heroin cases in the 12 to 25 age group according in the last ten years according to Connolly. Patients entering drug rehabilitation centers for heroin treatment rose from 2,600 in 1992 to 11,600 in 2002.
“Heroin now accounts for almost half of all cases,” said spokesperson Connolly.
One of the more interesting aspects of the Red Ribbon campaign is the calendar and poster contest being conducted by the attorney general’s office. 5th graders from around the state have been asked to submit an anti-drug poster using Attorney General’s Mike Fisher’s theme “Team up against drugs.”
The winning posters are made into a calendar with the grand prize winner’s drawing on the cover. An additional 10 honorable mention winners have their art work turned into a poster size wall calendar. The attorney general’s website also features calendars from 1998 through 2002.
