MORE AND MORE STUDENTS GETTING THE MESSAGE OF DARE

Another Group Of Students Has Been Dared To Stay Away From Drugs And Alcohol.

Timmins Times -- Another group of students has been dared to stay away from
drugs and alcohol.

During the most recent DARE graduations, elementary school students in the
community vowed to say 'no' to harmful substances.

Constable Rick Lemieux, who ran the program this year, said he wanted to
have role models present at the graduation to show the children there are
plenty of ways to say 'no' and become successful.

Among those were Dr. Gerald Champion and Olympic athlete Jason Gervais.
Both gentlemen introduced themselves to the students and told their
stories, and both said they had excellent people in their lives who helped
them make good decisions.

"If you want to soar high with the eagles, you can't walk amongst the
turkeys," said Gervais. "The secret is to never let people influence you.
Be smart and choose a good life, and give yourself the chance to succeed."

Dr. Champion said that saying 'no' to drugs was easy for him, but he said
it was mostly because he was well prepared.

"I was afraid of the consequences, but I was also afraid of the drugs
themselves; where they came from, and what affects they would have on my
body. Now you might say I'm one of the biggest dealers in town," he joked,
"but I know where they come from, what affects they have, and I'm there to
help my patients through any side effects."

Champion suggested to the students to find an activity that they love and
do that instead.

"If you don't abuse substances, you're going to have a lot of choices for
your future," he continued. "If you do abuse them, you still have choices,
but you might not make the right one."