THOUSANDS WALK FOR HEALTHY HEARTS AND DRUG-FREE KIDS

TAMPA - The city plays host to two Saturday morning walks that raise
awareness of their causes.

At the University of South Florida, thousands of people walked three
miles Saturday to raise awareness and research money for America's No.
1 killer, heart disease.

Twelve miles south, in downtown Tampa, about 6,000 children and adults
carrying banners and wearing ``Say No to Drugs''T-shirts marched along
Morgan Street on their way to the Garrison Seaport for an anti-drug
celebration.

In the march against heart disease, an estimated 7,000 people,
including walkers at the Carillon center in Pinellas County, raised
$500,000 for research and education, said American Heart Association
spokesman Bruce Inverso.

It's a disease many of the walkers know intimately. Some have lost a
loved one to it. Others have survived it.

Jackie Creal's mind was on the war against drugs as she and six of her
children strode through downtown as part of Hillsborough County's
sixth annual ``Say No to Drugs'' walk.

Creal's children, ages 8 to 12, had climbed out of their beds earlier
in the morning without too much complaint. They knew their mother
meant business.

``They asked me last night what it was about, why we were doing
this,'' said Creal, 51, of Brandon. ``I told them whenever you're
united you show solidarity.''

WHEN CREAL TELLS her children - she has seven at home - that illegal
drugs destroy lives and families, she's not spouting rhetoric heard on
a television commercial or something she read somewhere. She speaks
from the heart with the sincerity of one who knows.

She has watched a loved one grapple with drug addiction. And five of
her six adopted children come from a family torn apart by drugs.

``Drugs are bad,'' Creal said. ``It affects everyone, not just poor
people.''

The walk is a tiny part of what it takes to teach kids right from
wrong, said Creal, who has the help of her husband, Patrick. She said
so much more is involved, starting with love, hard work and prayer.

Son Tyrone, 12, a seventh-grader at Burns Middle School, said the
walk ``is cool.''

After all, there were police officers on horses and bicycles, Ronald
McDonald with his orange hair and big shoes, and the Hamburglar.
Ronald and Hamburglar autographed many of the freeT-shirts given to
those at the walk.

Other dignitaries included Tampa Mayor Dick Greco,d Hillsborough
schools Superintendent Earl Lennard, Public Defender Julianne Holt,
State Attorney Harry Lee Coe III and Commissioners Jan Platt and
Thomas Scott.

THE ANTI-DRUG WALK began at the County Center, 601 E. Kennedy Blvd.,
and ended at Garrison Seaport, where there were games, dancing, music,
magic acts and other entertainment throughout the afternoon.

The Rough Riders, men who belong to a Tampa service organization named
after Teddy Roosevelt's cavalry, gave out strands of colorful beads.

National Guardsmen were on hand, and the police dive team gave a
demonstration.

An estimated 20,000 visited the ``Kidsfest'' after the walk, said Pat
Marsicano of the Hillsborough County Anti-Drug Alliance.

``It's a feel-good kind of thing,'' said Aidi Calderoni of Tampa, who
was with her husband, Pat, a Rough Rider.