POLICE MESSAGE REACHES KIDS

Video Presentation Preaches Dangers of Drugs, Gangs, Violence

Orillia OPP Const. Gerry Dwyer told his young audience he wasn't
going to preach to them.

And he didn't have to. The images said it all.

Grade 7-8 students from Foley Catholic, Brechin Public and Uptergrove
Public schools watched three videos related to substance abuse,
methamphetamines, violence and gangs during a presentation Monday at Foley.

"There are gangs in Toronto, and they are moving this way," Dwyer
told the audience, explaining how gangs like to quietly infiltrate
college and university towns and their educational institutions.

A video was then shown featuring graphic footage of violence caught on camera.

After the assembly, Grade 8 student Travis Stong said he was "surprised."

"I didn't think, out here, there would be gangs," he said.

The school year will soon be over, and Grade 8 students are counting
the days until they start high school in September.

The secondary school atmosphere is a lot different than elementary,
noted Dwyer. There are more drugs and violence, and peer pressure can
be intense.

"There's going to be a tendency to blend in," he said.

Ultimately, students will make their own choices, he conceded.
Monday's presentation was intended to help guide the tough
decision-making that lies not so far ahead. "You have a base to build
on, because now you know the facts," Dwyer said.

The substance-abuse video initially focused on tobacco and marijuana,
then led into information about stimulants, pills,
performance-enhancing drugs and inhalants.

"It's pretty crazy to know you can die from your first take of (an
inhalant)," said Grade 8 student Angelique Garner. "I can't imagine
getting involved with that."

Not all of the information presented was new to the students, who
have been involved in previous years with the OPP's Drug Abuse
Resistance Education (DARE) program.

"I already knew drugs would destroy your personal life and your
social life," Mitchell Dougan said.

The videos confirmed that knowledge, as they featured interviews with
former users and families of people who died as a result of their addictions.

Dwyer and his team of volunteers will bring the presentation to
Regent Park Public School on June 2 from 10 to 11:30 a.m. Police
expect about 450 students from that school and four others in Orillia
to attend.