DARE REMAINS A VALUABLE TOOL

GREEN BAY - I'm responding to Matt LeBeau's May 4 Forum letter, "DARE
message falls on deaf ears." I'd like to clear up some misunderstandings
about the program.

DARE puts a uniformed police officer in front of young students, to act as a
positive role model and teach healthy life choices. I believe DARE officers
have played an important role in reducing the drug-abuse problem by getting
young students to think about these topics before they face them in middle
school.

This program creates dialogue between parents and children about drugs and
alcohol. To say DARE only provides students with sugarcoated "Drugs are bad"
or "You shouldn't do drugs" messages is false. Those who believe this either
haven't participated in DARE or are the deaf ears our message sometimes
falls upon.

Having former junkies talk to students about drug use may make for more
interesting stories in high school, but it would be irresponsible to put
that type of person in front of our fifth and sixth graders.

DARE is not a cure-all for society's problems. It is, however, a valuable
tool that makes a difference in our community.

Officer Kevin Vanden Heuvel, 2003 Wisconsin DARE officer of the year