Countywide : Red Ribbon Week to Be Celebrated

Community fairs, ribbon cuttings and drug-free rallies are scheduled throughout Orange County during the next several days as communities celebrate Red Ribbon Week.

Launched in 1985 after U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration agent Enrique Camarena was murdered by drug traffickers, Red Ribbon Week has been celebrated in Orange County since 1988.

“I am scared for my own kids,” said Linda Sneen, who spent the past several months making ribbons and painting posters in preparation for events at Paularino Elementary School in Costa Mesa. “Why not make a big deal of it? That way the kids are going to remember it more.”

The festivities officially begin Saturday, but many cities are getting a jump starting today and Friday. In Anaheim, the Chamber of Commerce and Anaheim Union High School District are holding a rally at Savanna High School starting at 11 a.m. today.

Students at Valencia High School in Placentia will kick off Red Ribbon Week with a movie Friday night at the Cinemapolis in Anaheim Hills.

“This will give them something to do in a drug- and alcohol-free environment at a price they can afford,” said Bob Parish, the school’s activities director. “It’s important to show students they can have a good time without being involved with drugs and alcohol.”

The Red Ribbon Week Organizing Committee, a countywide volunteer group, is helping coordinate activities, such as making red ribbons and urging church officials to include drug-free messages in sermons.

“It is neat to see how creative people can be in order to get the message out,” said Santa Ana Police DARE Officer John Reed, the Orange County honorary chairman for Red Ribbon Week. For more information about Orange County events, call the Red Ribbon hot line at (714) 568-4187.