CHILDREN HEAR FIRSTHAND ABOUT THE FIGHT AGAINST DRUGS

Red Ribbon Week Is Here for Texas Schools, and Each School Has Its
Own Activities.

Cpl. April Roppolo, school resource officer for Highland Village,
said that each school and each day has its own theme.

"You'll see some of the kids wearing camouflage, to show that we are
at war with drug use," she said.

As an example, Roppolo said that one of the schools has a wrecked car
on campus. The message to kids is: Don't wreck your life with drugs.
Roppolo said that the schools organized the activities for Red Ribbon
week, but that the police were overseeing the festivities for the week.

"The goal is to make kids and parents aware of the dangers of drug
use," she said.

Red Ribbon Week is in honor of Enrique "Kiki" Camarena, who was sent
to Mexico to work undercover for the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA).
On Feb. 7, 1985, the 37-year-old Camarena disappeared on his way to
meet his wife for lunch.

One month later, his body was discovered in a shallow grave. It
appeared that he had been tortured to death.

He became something of a martyr to enraged parents, who wanted to
fight back against drug use.

As part of the Red Ribbon Week celebration, the DEA surveillance
helicopter made an appearance at Flower Mound Elementary school.

Special agent, Steve Laird, spoke to the students about how they
followed the "bad guys" around in the helicopter, using binoculars
and a camera.

He also told the students about how when the helicopter is equipped
with one, it can fire a red laser on the ground that finds fugitives.

"It's like Star Wars. The bad guys can't see it, but it's pretty
cool," Laird said.

The event was mostly for the education of the students. Laird
explained to the eager students the difference between good drugs and
bad drugs. Laird admits that the topic of drugs is more complicated
than it was in the past, but thinks the children understand the
difference very well.

"The kids realize the difference between good drugs and bad drugs. I
tell them that good drugs are ones that make you feel better, and
that you get them from a doctor," he said.

One designation is that good drugs are medicine while the bad ones
are sold by a stranger, he tells the children.

No questions are asked about the difference between good and bad
drugs, showing that he has explained the topic satisfactorily to the
curious crowd.

The children had many questions for the crew of the helicopter.

Diane Norwood, of the DEA, answered random questions from the children.

One of the questions was how many people they had "caught." The
answer "of about 100" people gathered some smiles.

The answer that got the most response was when Norwood was asked how
much she made.

"Most people wouldn't want to answer that, but I want people to know
that I have a great job which I love," she said. The answer of about
$70,000 a year had many children whispering in the crowd.

In case the children thought that the life of a helicopter DEA agent
was too glamorous, Agent Laird had warned them otherwise earlier in
the presentation.

"Bad guys don't have jobs, and they are out at all hours of the day.
Sometimes our dinner is crackers or a Snickers," Laird said.

Another delicate topic was the history of "Kiki" Camarena, whose fate
was the impetus for Red Ribbon Week.

When a child asked how he died, Norwood was honest, but delicate when
explaining that he had been tortured to death.

Laird said that he tries to "tone down" the story of Camerena's
death, and tries to keep it age-appropriate, but that it is important
that children understand what happened.

"The message gets lost over time," he said.

Laird said that Red Ribbon Week is still important and relevant with
terrorism and drug sales being intertwined with each other.

The DEA helicopter will be making several more stops in the area
throughout the rest or Red Ribbon Week.