Local Teens Raise Awareness Via Red Ribbon Week Activities
Local Teens Raise Awareness Via Red Ribbon Week Activities
The Milbank High School students who participate in the local chapter of Teens Against Tobacco Use (TATU) are working to increase awareness of the the organization’s efforts to reduce drug and alcohol use by teens.
The approximately 20 members of the local group are stepping up their efforts during National Red Ribbon Week, which continues through Friday, October 31.
During the national push, the local TATU will hide red ribbons throughout the school to turn in for a prize. They’ve also displayed posters with various facts about drugs, alcohol and vaping throughout the school, according to Heidi Wellnitz, advisor.
“Members of TATU have recorded various announcements that will be playing this week on KMSD 1510 and they will be tying red ribbons on vehicles at Milbank School District,” Wellnitz said. Two of the students also submitted Letters to the Editor for publication in this edition of the Grant County Review.
“We’d appreciate your support during Red Ribbon Week, by taking this message into your homes and taking a stand against drugs, alcohol and tobacco,” Wellnitz said.
The history of Red Ribbon Week began in 1985, after the assassination of U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency agent Enrique Camarena enraged many Americans. Young students in his hometown began wearing red ribbons in his memory. The message of the red ribbons was simple: Take a stand against the loss of life and energy to drug abuse. That message and its symbol, the red ribbon, spread rapidly.
In 1988, the National Family Partnership took the Red Ribbon celebration nationwide. Since then, Red Ribbon Week has been listed by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services as a national health observance and has been touching millions of children, families, and communities across the nation.
