CAMPUS POLICE BRING HOME TOP HONOR IN COMPETITION

Members of the McAlester Campus Police dared to enter the Drug Abuse
Resistance Education car competition in Oklahoma City with a car that
had a few years on it.

They won the first place trophy with the 1993 Chevrolet Caprice
anyway, driving away with top honors at the Oklahoma DARE Officers
Association Conference.

Campus Police officers Debbie Burrows and Brenda Kelley-Fields say
the young people who have seen the car are impressed by it.

"The kids think it's hot," Burrows said.

Making a good impression is important to the two officers, since the
campus police force will teach DARE classes to McAlester Public
School students during the coming school year.

Campus police will teach students in the first, third, fifth and
seventh grades about the harmful effects of substance abuse.

As Burrows held the trophy aloft, a couple of teens who happened to
walk by the car were impressed by it.

"I like the sound of it," said Martin Stites, 13, of McAlester. "I
know it's going to get a lot of looks."

Christian Gooding, also 13 and who is visiting McAlester from his
home in Texas, also liked the car.

"It's awesome," he said.

Burrows said other DARE officers and their families voted on the
winning car during the Oklahoma City conference .

She and Fields were pleased by the first place trophy, especially
since it represents a community effort.

"Everything on it's been donated," Burrows said.

They gave a lot of credit to a crew at Buck Wilson's Frame and Body
Shop in McAlester. Workers not only designed the car's paint and
upholstery jobs, but also did the work themselves.

"The whole crew chipped in," said Jason Wilson, referring to the
creation of the car's design. "We sat down and said what we thought
would be cool."

Crew members who worked on the car were Mark Davis, Eddie Jewell,
Chris Williams, Wilson and Woody Roberts.

Wilson said they were glad to help.

"We want to reach all the kids we can," Wilson said. It's important
for drug prevention. It's important for kids to know that drugs are bad."