Merced schools celebrate Red Ribbon Week

Merced elementary school students are planning fun activities this week as part of a national awareness campaign with a serious message.

Red Ribbon Week aims to steer children away from future use of illegal drugs by instilling positive attitudes and inspiring them to lead healthy lives.

Students at Charles Wright Elementary School kicked off the events Monday by creating a human rainbow.

More than 500 students wore different rainbow colors based on their grade levels and stood in an arc while retired teacher Michael McLane climbed a 15-foot ladder to photograph them. Monday’s message was “Show good character, be drug-free!” In the afternoon, students enjoyed an assembly with a BMX performance and an anti-drug message.

The national Red Ribbon Week has its roots in a campaign to remember Enrique Camarena, a U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration agent who was kidnapped, tortured and killed in Mexico in 1985.

Camarena insisted on joining the DEA despite his mother’s concern, telling her, “I’m only one person, but I want to make a difference,” according to the Red Ribbon Campaign’s website.

Following his death, friends and neighbors began wearing red satin ribbons to honor Camarena’s memory and his efforts to fight the illegal drug trade. In 1988, the campaign went national with support from the National Family Partnership, a nonprofit founded by a group of parents who believed they should play a role in drug prevention, according to the group.

Each year, schools across the country celebrate Red Ribbon Week, typically at the end of October. The campaign promotes anti-drug messages and encourages students to embrace healthy habits.

“It’s important as students learn, with everything they’re exposed to in the world, that they have the right direction and a continued message repeated each year,” said Lori Slaven, principal at Charles Wright.

Grace Silveira, a sixth-grade student at the school, said she has celebrated Red Ribbon Week since she was in kindergarten. She can easily recite the message of the campaign: “Red Ribbon Week celebrates the importance of being drug free and teaches all students to be healthy and safe.”

She’s looking forward to Wednesday’s dress-up day, “Hats off to being drug free!” since the school will relax its dress code and allow students to wear hats.

All schools in the Merced City School District will celebrate Red Ribbon Week with similar activities.

This story was originally published October 26, 2015 at 5:33 PM with the headline "Merced schools celebrate Red Ribbon Week."