Red Ribbon Week at the Palmer School
Each year at the end of October the National Family Partnership invites families and schools to participate in Red Ribbon Week as a way to talk to students about drug use prevention. For the first time, Palmer School participated in Red Ribbon Week with dress up days, essay and poster contests and a guest speaker.
“This was our first real go at Red Ribbon Week so it was a small start, but I think it was a success!” said Mary Beth Ketchum, Palmer Home for Children counselor.
Palmer School usually holds a Spirit Week for the children which is much like Spirit Week many of the public schools hold during their school’s homecoming week. This year Palmer School combined Red Ribbon Week with Spirit Week for five days of fun and learning.
“They had a lot of fun planning,” said Pam Abrams, Director of Education. “Many house parents took them shopping and helped to plan their attire. This included grades K-12. The creativity came out!”
This year’s dress up days included:
Monday: Neon Day
Tuesday: Twin Day
Wednesday: Camo Day
Thursday: Hat Day
Friday: Jersey Day
Middle and high school students participated in an essay contest answering the questions, “Why is staying drug free key for your future? How will you stay drug free?” The first place winner received a $20 Walmart gift card and the second place winner received a $15 iTunes gift card.
Elementary school students participated in a poster contest following the National Red Ribbon Week theme “Your future is key so stay drug free”. The first place winner of each contest received a $20 Walmart gift card and the second place winner received a $10 Sonic gift card.
The staff announced the winners during a program on Thursday which included guest speaker, Max Branch. Branch serves as a member of the Narcotics Task Force in Lowndes County. He and another task force member spoke to the children about the drug problem in Lowndes county and answered their questions.
Red Ribbon Week is a part of the Red Ribbon Campaign which began in 1985 in response to the murder of DEA Agent Enrique Camarena. Each year schools use this week to talk about the dangers of drugs and the importance of staying drug free.
