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2006 Dawson County D.A.R.E. Day!
D.A.R.E. Day mixes graduates with role models
By: Lindsey Tederman
05/06/2006
LEXINGTON - It was D.A.R.E. Day at the Heartland Museum of Military Vehicles in Lexington for all Dawson County D.A.R.E. graduates in 5th and 6th grades.
Dawson County D.A.R.E. Instructor Cheri Ziebell said the day was in recognition of the program's graduates. "It's my way of celebrating the graduates," Ziebell said. "They have committed to being drug and alcohol free. This is my part to reinforce the commitment."
Ziebell who works with the Dawson County Sheriff's Department said the day is also for the students to meet positive role models and have fun. Role models were from the following organizations: Nebraska State Patrol, Cozad Police Department, Nebraska Game and Parks, Lexington VFW Auxiliary, Veterans of the Heartland Museum, Cozad Police Department and Miss Nebraska Kelly Keiser.
Dudley Sorensen, a conservation officer from the Game and Parks Department, was on hand to meet the students and explain the patrol boats and the inside of a deputy vehicle. He says he likes the one-on-one time because the kids get to see authority in a different light. "Familiarity is nice," Sorensen said. "That way they (students) are not so apprehensive."
Sgt. Fred Storm of the Nebraska State Patrol showed the students what he called "a matter of life and death," the decision to wear a seatbelt. The outcomes of this choice are shown in a rollover display. The demonstration includes an S10 pickup suspended in the air, making a rollover visible. Mannequins sit in the car, one wearing a seatbelt and one without. The one without the seatbelt flies out of the vehicle when the rollover is simulated while the mannequin with the seatbelt on stays in the pickup.
Sgt. Storm encouraged the students to play a "seatbelt game" with their parents, which provides incentives when a seatbelt is worn and penalties when it isn't.
Miss Nebraska Kelly Keiser was signing autographs for the students. She is a positive role model for these students as she promotes healthy living and getting involved. She is an advocate for the 4-H program, another program in which elementary-age students can also participate.
Tammy McMichael from the Cozad Community Hospital was also available at a booth, which showed students the lasting, unhealthy effects of tobacco with lung and teeth molds. She also offered fact brochures.
D.A.R.E. stands for Drug Abuse Resistance Education. According to its website, it is a program that gives kids the skills they need to avoid involvement in drugs, gangs and violence. It is a police officer-led series of classroom lessons that teaches children how to resist peer pressure and live productive drug and violence-free lives.
News article from the Clipper-Herald Newspaper
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