SOME YOUTHS DARE TO TAKE A STAND

I will remember a terrifying sound forever. It was a wretched scream.
The scream of a girl just before her boyfriend's car collided with an
oncoming tractor-trailer.

This girl was soon to be the victim of impaired driving. Her
boyfriend had gotten in his car with her while under the influence
and lost control of the vehicle.

His life was spared. Unfortunately, the girl died immediately upon impact.

This was only a sound clip I heard during a presentation a few months
ago at school. Norbert Georget a former paramedic from Saskatchewan
gave the presentation on impaired driving and drug and alcohol abuse.

During the presentation, Georget showed grizzly photos of mangled
vehicles and dead bodies, all victims of impaired driving.

He recalls responding to a vehicle accident involving alcohol almost
every day during his career. He has found hundreds of young Canadians
dead at crash sites. All of them had made the same decision: to drive drunk.

Georget says during most impaired driving accidents death occurs
within 30 seconds of impact.

Driving while impaired is a major cause of death in Canada. Thousands
of Canadian lives are lost each year because of people's decisions to
get behind the wheel while under the influence. It is the number 1
cause of death among youths in Canada.

This presentation was not my first lecture on the subject. I, like
many of you, was not totally aware of the dangers of drugs and
alcohol until taught by a very special person last year.

Const. Lorna DeWare is a seasoned 10-year veteran with the Summerside
City Police Services and the instructor of the DARE program. DARE
(Drug Abuse Resistance Education) is taught at the Grade 5 and 6
levels at Summerside elementary schools and focuses on the effects of
peer pressure and the dangers of drugs, alcohol and cigarette smoking.

DeWare also explains the toll alcohol takes on young bodies and the
side effects of under-aged drinking.

The colourful workbooks given to each student contain various lessons
and activities used to help prevent drug abuse.

DeWare came into the classroom for each weekly session in full
uniform and tried to maintain a welcoming presence in the school. She
remained at the school during lunch hour and chatted with students on
the playground.

She admits she loves teaching the lessons but her favourite part of
the program is interacting with the students.

"I am a people person," she says. "Everybody has a unique personality
and I like the down time."

This was not just a job for her, it was a mission. She was determined
to have every young person completely educated on the dangers of
drugs and alcohol.

Drugs, such as marijuana, are memory loss drugs. They can increase
the rate of the heart, cause dizziness and slurred speech.

There are 200 known poisons in cigarette smoke and smoking is also
the number 1 cause of lung cancer in Canada. It is important for us
to realize the dangers of these substances.

Peer pressure can lead to drug use and smoking. It is important to
learn how to get out of tough situations and to use good judgment.
Learning how to say no to someone may be one of the most important
lessons you will learn in life.

If you find yourself in a jam, think about the consequences that
follow your actions.

Instead of making an unwise decision, I would think back to my
previous DARE lessons.

I think DARE was an essential part of my education. This program is
beneficial to today's youth. DARE is not only offered in Summerside,
over 36 million children in 54 countries worldwide participate in DARE.

Constable Deware is a role model for me. I look up to her. She has a
wonderful personality that allows her to interact with students.

Programs like DARE and presentations by professionals like Norbert
Georget are essential components of today's education. Today's youth
are tomorrow's future and we must continue to learn to think before we act.

As Norbert Georget says, "We are not born winners, we are born choosers."