A couple weeks ago, Tiverton High School promoted the drug-free and bully-free lifestyle with Red Ribbon Week. Red Ribbon Week is a week of showing the importance of supporting and promoting a healthy, drug-free and/or bully-free lifestyle among not only the students of Tiverton High, but students across the nation. Red Ribbon Week is celebrated nationwide, the goal being to educate students on the dangers of substance abuse and encourage them to make positive and healthy choices.
I found out from our Student Assistance Counselor, Ms. V, that Red Ribbon Week is “the nation’s oldest and largest drug prevention awareness program. It began after the death of Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Special Agent Enrique “Kiki” Camarena, who was brutally tortured and murdered in 1985 by drug traffickers he was investigating in Mexico. After his death, people started wearing red ribbons to honor Kiki’s sacrifice. Today, millions of people celebrate Red Ribbon Week by wearing red ribbons, promoting awareness of drug use and participating in drug-free pledges.”
Our Red Ribbon Week occurred on October 23rd this year at Tiverton High School, organized by our school leadership group. They set up bulletin boards near the main office and a lunch table to kickstart the week. At this lunch table, two students in our leadership group stood and asked students to sign their names on a red ribbon to pledge to be either drug-free or bully-free in support of making healthy choices and those already making healthy choices. Students who signed up got to have their choice of stickers, pins, pens, lanyards, stress balls, and some even got squeaky ducks. We had a lot of people sign ribbons and choose to support the bully- and substance- free lifestyle. All in all, Red Ribbon Week was a great way to raise awareness for this drug abuse and anti-bullying program.
