Pubdate: Tue, 17 Oct 2006
Source: Tallahassee Democrat (FL)
Copyright: 2006 Tallahassee Democrat.
Contact:  http://www.tallahassee.com/mld/democrat/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/444
Author: Tamaryn Waters, Democrat Staff Writer
Note: Prints email address for LTEs sent by email

STUDENTS HEAR ANTI-DRUG MESSAGE

First Lt. Arthur Gaines III has served more than 17  years in the 
Army, fighting for his country and now  he's helping with another fight.

The 35-year-old travels across the Big Bend talking to  students 
about the dangers of drugs and, more  importantly, how to make better 
decisions.

Gaines is the commander of the 144th Transportation  Company in 
Marianna and speaker for the Florida Army  National Guard's Drug 
Demand Reduction Program. He  presented his message to a group of 20 
teenagers and  adults Tuesday evening at an annual meeting sponsored 
by the Military Order of the World Wars.

In his travels, Gaines said he always runs into one  child who thinks 
marijuana is "OK."

He said most of them don't know there's a difference  between the 
substance found on the streets and the one  prescribed from a doctor 
until he tells them.

"I don't like to tell them, 'Don't do drugs," Instead,  he said, he 
wants to give them the facts and support  they need to make the 
decision on their own regarding  the consequences of drugs.

"That way, the choice is totally up to them," he said.

Daniel Wagner, 17, a cadet captain in the Marine Corps  Junior 
Reserve Officer Training Corps at Leon High  School, listened closely 
to Gaines and said he may  share some of the messages he heard to 
younger cadets  in a class he teaches.

Anber Little, a junior at North Florida Christian  School, said she 
knows of teenagers abusing  "substances" and she felt like some of 
them should have  been at the reception.

"They need to learn about what's going to happen to  them and how bad 
it is for them," Anber, 15, said.

Gaines earned his bachelor's degree in health  information management 
from Florida A&M University. He  has 13 years of enlisted military 
service and four  years of commissioned service.
- ---
MAP posted-by: Elaine