A MESSAGE WRITTEN IN RED

Officials Say Red Ribbon Week Is An Opportunity To Drive Home An Antidrug
Message Early.

PINELLAS PARK - Wearing red and carrying signs with antidrug messages, the
student body lined up in the breezeway at Cross Bayou Elementary School in
Pinellas Park last Wednesday, ready to march.

With radio station Q-105 broadcasting an instrumental version of Pump Up
the Jam in the background, the long line snaked around the corner of the
building and out onto the physical education field, with students chanting
"Just say no!"

After a lap around the field and basketball courts, students and faculty
members congregated under a pavilion to receive student awards, do cheers
and listen to guest speakers as part of their kick-off to the 20th annual
Red Ribbon Week, a national drug prevention campaign.

Principal Marcia Stone greeted the students and introduced guests,
including local officials, business sponsors and Pinellas Park High School
cheerleaders, who came out to support the event. Cross Bayou's chorus led
the assemblage in a rendition of I Am Responsible, before Stone presented
student awards for notable or outstanding performance in math, reading and
writing for the FCAT.

School Board member Carol Cook talked about some of the elements of
character that influence good decisions, like respect, honesty and
self-discipline.

"If you're going to respect yourself and your body, are you going to take
drugs?" she asked the students to a resounding "Nooooooo!"

Pinellas Park Mayor Bill Mischler talked about the importance of making
good decisions early in life.

"Our whole life is making choices. You can take the good road or you can
take the bad road," he said.

Led by the high school cheerleaders, students and faculty members did the
"Bobcat cheer" before saying the Pledge of Allegiance and taking a moment
of silence to reflect on making good choices.

PTA member Claire Brockmeier said that although her children know that
drugs are bad, the school's participation reinforces the message and shows
support.

"They can set the example," she said, for "no drugs, no tolerance."

Brockmeier, mother of two children at the school - 8-year-old Megan and
5-year-old Garrett - said she worries more about temptations and peer
pressure during the preteen years. But learning the lessons early in life
can help cement the idea that drugs are bad, she said.

"I think it'll be in middle school. It (the rally) might just give them a
little more confidence to walk away," she said.

Brockmeier helped other PTA volunteers assemble bottles of water and
after-rally snacks for the kids before the event. Supporting the theme,
bags of pretzels contained the message "Don't let drugs twist your minds."
Students also received red wristbands to wear as a reminder of their
commitment to stay drug free.

Guidance counselor Judy Jones, who coordinated the rally, said that
actively involving the children helps them remember the message.

"It reinforces the message, and it's something that they never forget. It's
a memorable event in their lives," she said. "When you do fun activities,
kids remember it better."

Kay Steen, resource teacher with Safe and Drug Free Schools in Pinellas
County, agreed.

"You plant the seed. Kids seem to think when you talk to them that
everybody (uses drugs). That's simply not true."

Steen said children look to their teachers to set the example.

"They're modeling. They look at their teachers who are drug free" and want
to emulate them, she said.

The Red Ribbon campaign began as a grass roots movement on behalf of
Enrique "Kiki" Camarena, a U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration officer
kidnapped and killed while investigating a major drug cartel in Mexico in
1985. Camarena's family and friends in Calexico, Calif., began wearing red
satin ribbons to honor him and as a symbol against illegal drug
trafficking. The Pinellas County School Board adopted the program in 1990.

In the past, Cross Bayou would march down 102nd Avenue N and across 66th
Street to communicate a unified stance against drug abuse. But safety
concerns and traffic issues prompted school officials to limit the march to
school grounds.

"Society can make a difference. They can help the schools be proactive,"
Steen said. "Until we get society working with us, it's a battle."