Pubdate: Mon, 20 Jun 2005 Source: North Thompson Star/Journal (CN BC) Copyright: 2005 The North Thompson Star/Journal Contact: http://www.starjournal.net/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1231 Author: Jill Hayward Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/dare.htm (D.A.R.E.) Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/youth.htm (Youth) D.A.R.E. GRADS LEARN LIFE SKILLS Graduation celebrations for over 40 D.A.R.E. students are slated for this Wednesday evening, June 15, at the Barriere Elementary School auditorium starting at 7 p.m. Children from Mrs. Matthews and Ms. Oats Grade 5 classes will be recipients as well as children from the Neqweyqwelsten School Grade 5 and 7 classes from Chu Chua. "This is a really good group of children," said D.A.R.E. Officer RCMP Cst. Diana Schapp, "We are very happy with all of them and it is especially nice to be able to include the students from Chu Chua as well. We hope everyone will come out and congratulate these youngsters." The D.A.R.E. program gives kids the life skills they need to avoid involvement with drugs, gangs, and violence. D.A.R.E. stands for Drug Abuse Resistance Education. It is a drug abuse prevention education program designed to equip elementary, middle and high school children with knowledge about drug abuse, the consequences of abuse, and skills for resisting peer pressure to experiment with drugs, alcohol and tobacco. It is based on the premise that prevention is the only long-term answer to drug abuse. The D.A.R.E. program is taught in a classroom setting by a specially trained law enforcement officer, creating a positive atmosphere for students to interact with local police departments. - --- MAP posted-by: Beth