DARE TO BE DIFFERENT

It's bright yellow, patriotic and eye catching. It has shiny rims, tinted
windows, fancy tires and a 1,000-watt sound system.

It's the kind of car that would attract any kid's attention, which is
exactly what DARE officers who are trying to convince youngsters to stay
away from drugs hope for.

What Jacksonville police DARE officers John Ricker and Stephen Pierson
didn't count on was that the department's DARE car would standout among
other DARE cars across the state.

Last week, they found out otherwise.

Ricker and Pierson, who are responsible for the Drug Abuse Resistance
Education in Jacksonville elementary schools, attended the N.C. DARE
Officers Association annual conference in Charlotte.

"It's a conference that updates you on drug education in schools, the latest
drugs and everything else that will assist you in teaching students better,"
Ricker said.

While they were at the conference, Ricker and Pierson entered Jacksonville's
car, which is a fully loaded 2002 Monte Carlo Super Sport, in the DARE car
show.

Pitted against vehicles pumped up with plenty of specialties from other law
enforcement agencies, especially those in bigger cities such as Charlotte
and Raleigh, the Jacksonville DARE car appeared to be one of many attractive
vehicles.

But the officers in attendance, along with members of the state's DARE
board, thought otherwise.

The Jacksonville car won first place in the specialty division and was voted
the officer's favorite, in other words, it was the best in the show, Pierson
said.

The Jacksonville DARE car will represent North Carolina in the national
competition held at a DARE conference in Nashville, Tenn., in July, Ricker
said.

"Now this is actually a North Carolina DARE car," Ricker said. "We were
thrilled."

Morton Motors donated the DARE car along with the additions such as the
rims, tires, lights and tinting to the Jacksonville Police Department's DARE
program last year. The bright yellow Monte Carlo replaced a hot red 1990
Mustang, which DARE in turn donated to Crimestoppers.

When Ricker and Pierson received the newer car, they weren't accustomed to
coming up with a design that had to work with yellow.

"When you think of specialty cars, you think of black or red," Pierson said.

The DARE officers decided to go with a patriotic theme because that seemed
to be popular. They also added a picture of Darren the DARE mascot on the
front and a replica of the patch all Jacksonville police officers wear on
the side. Sign Works in Jacksonville took its ideas and created the details
on the car.

What Ricker and Pierson found out is that yellow had a huge impact on the
fifth-grade students they work to reach each day.

"Yellow is a hot color," Ricker said. "We have the only yellow DARE car in
the state. We want to draw attention to the DARE program, and this is how we
are doing it. When kids see this DARE car at special events, it makes them
happy. It's something they can be proud of."