WYE GR. 6 STUDENTS DARE TO SAY NO

70 Kids Graduate Drug Abuse Resistance Education Program At Wye School
During Ceremony Attended By Jason Maas

"Drugs are gross and destructive," said one Grade 6 student as she
read aloud to an audience, comprised of proud parents. "Thanks to
Officer Mortensen, I know when someone offers me drugs, I will say
no."

In total, 70 Grade 6 students completed their drug abuse resistance
education (DARE) program under the watchful eyes of teachers and of
course, former 25 year RCMP veteran cop turned peace officer, Greta
Mortensen.

"I have the best job in the world," beamed the DARE educator amidst a
throng of excited students following speeches and awards. "I love what
I'm doing; watching kids grow with the program I mean. We're a tool
that will hopefully be used to help our kids make good decisions."

Mortensen, along with former Edmonton Eskimo turned Montreal Allouette
Jason Maas, were present to give words of encouragement to students.

"I speak from the heart," Maas said. "I've come to three of these, and
each time I tell the kids that I'm drug free and tobacco free by
choice. It's been that way my whole life."

Maas said that programs like DARE are important because they prepare
children for the day when they'll have to make some tough decisions
about drug use. "It's a choice, and one day you'll have to make that
choice," Maas said. "Use what you've learned in DARE to say no to
those sorts of things," he said.

Maas said it's exciting for him to be a part of the program as a
speaker, acknowledging that one day his own daughter, currently in
kindergarten, will take the same DARE training.

As far as teachers who help facilitate the program, Grade 6 teacher
Tanya Jordan has seen a lot in her nine years working with DARE in the
classrooms.

"I think students are more at risk now than ever before. They'll be
faced with pressures on drugs as early as next year. Because of that,
intervention needs to start at a young age. They'll have choices to
make we never had to make until university."

The DARE program started in 1983 in Los Angeles and is now being
taught throughout 43 countries world-wide. The program has been
revised ten times to keep pace with changing social trends and as new
information on drug resistance has come available.