SERVICE CLUBS DONATE $600 TO SUPPORT LOCAL D.A.R.E. PROGRAM

Two service clubs donated a total of $600 during the 2013-14 school year to help local RCMP Officers teach the internationally recognized Drug Abuse Resistance Education (D.A.R.E.) program to 36 Oliver Grade 5 or 6 school children.  The Kiwanis Club donated $500, while the Royal Canadian Legion contributed $100.

RCMP Sgt. Gus Papagiannis, who oversees the D.A.R.E. program in BC, said that over 200 police officers teach D.A.R.E. each year to thousands of BC school children to equip them with the critical thinking and life skills necessary to choose a drug-free life. While police officers teach the program, the cost of the student learning materials is covered by community donations so the program can be offered free to all students.

Sgt. Papagiannis said the D.A.R.E. BC Society, a registered charitable organization, helps raise funds within each community to cover the cost of the student learning materials. “We are very grateful to these community organizations for their generous contributions to D.A.R.E. BC to cover the cost of  the learning materials for the students who took the program during the 2013-2014 school year,” he said.

The founder of D.A.R.E. BC, retired RCMP Staff Sergeant Chuck Doucette said the Society has already begun raising funds to support the upcoming 2014-15 DARE program in Oliver. “We are appealing to the general public for donations which can be made online through D.A.R.E. BC’s website. (www.darebc.com),” he said.