Kiwanis Club Dares To Support Dare Program

To the editor:

As a local service club with a mandate to help children and as an active
supporter of the DARE program the Nelson Kiwanis Club feels compelled to
address comments made by Mr. Dan Loehndorf in his March 15th letter
"DARE-ing to bash DARE."

In his letter Mr. Loehndorf makes specific reference to a 1999 West
Vancouver study conducted by Dr. Charles Curtis and infers that Dr. Curtis
found that program to have little or no effect on drug use. In actual fact
Dr. Curtis states in his conclusions that the study indicates that the
program was MOST effective in informing the students of the dangers of drug
and alcohol use and teaching them ways to respond when faced with
situations involving either drug use or violence. It should also be
clearly noted that Dr. Curtis advises any evaluation of DARE programs
should be made on the basis of locally collected data as demographics in
each case differ. A point in case, and a little closer to home, is a
letter from the Salmo Secondary School to the Salmo RCMP detachment who
initiated the program last year. In the letter the class of 2000-2001
grade 7 students, DARE graduates, are described as being more pro-active,
cooperative and respectful and that there has been a significant downward
trend in incidents of bullying and disruptive behaviour.

Reference is also made in Mr. Loehndorf's letter that the provincial
government sinks hundreds of thousands of dollars into DARE. The plain
fact is that direct provincial and federal government financial support is
ZERO. Some municipalities have put forward small donations to local
programs but the funding for the DARE programs in each community falls
solely on the shoulders of the community itself. The police officers and
teachers involved deliver this program out of a sense of responsibility for
our youth and their future, not out of an expectation of financial,
personal or political gain. The police officers and teachers in Nelson are
not compensated in any way other than their regular wages for all the time
they put into the program. We do take exception with Mr. Loehndorf's
description of our DARE officers as clowns. All you have to do is see the
faces of the students involved when a class is being delivered. They are
attentive and happy. They respect and enjoy the police officer's presence.
They laugh with them, not at them.

DARE is constantly being reviewed and updated to meet the ever changing
needs of our children. Initially an American program DARE has been adapted
to fit Canadian classrooms. Alone it will not solve one hundred per cent
of the problems, however, DARE helps supply the tools the children will
need in later life to make decisions and understand the consequences of
those decisions. DARE is a vital component of a comprehensive solution
that includes caring parents and a strong community partnership. We
believe DARE is working and as a community the program deserves our
support. Remember, our children are our future.

Kiwanis Club of Nelson