San Angelo Shirts and Sheep Get Red Accessories

Shirts and sheep will be wearing red this week as the City of San Angelo supports the slogan “A healthy me is drug-free.”

Kicking off the national campaign at a local level, parents, students and city organizations gathered on the courthouse steps on Monday at noon to declare the start of Red Ribbon Week with an official proclamation presented by Police Chief Tim Vasquez.

Paulette Schell, prevention director for Alcohol and Drug Abuse Council (ADAC) introduced the morning’s program, which included a brief speech by ADAC CEO Eric Sanchez on the week’s history.

“In 1985, U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency agent Enrique Camerena was working on a dangerous assignment against drug dealers in Mexico,” Sanchez began. “In 1985, he was abducted, tortured and killed by a drug cartel in Mexico, and in honor of his sacrifice, his family and friends started Red Ribbon Week,” Sanchez continued. “And his efforts to fight drug abuse continue to this day.”

The Red Ribbon Campaign is the largest drug prevention program in the nation and calls on individuals and organizations in the community to raise awareness about drug use and to combat its spread.

“This week is not about arresting those that are using drugs, it’s about preventing drugs attacking our family our children our friends, and keeping them from using narcotics,” said Police Chief Tim Vasquez following Sanchez’ presentation.

Vasquez said that through his work at the police department, he’s personally seen many instances of how drug abuse has affected the lives of individuals, ranging from businessmen to homeless persons.

“A couple of years ago, I was walking across the street to library to vote—imagine that, and it was probably for myself—when I was stopped by a gentleman I didn’t recognize,” Vasquez said. “He told me that I probably wouldn’t recognize him, but that he remembered me because I had arrested him in the early ‘90s for drug possession, Vasquez continued.

“He said that arrest had changed his life. He had been needing an intervention and was waiting for some kind of intervention to change his life and that’s what it was. And now he’s back with his family and has a good job and contributing to our community,” he said.

Stories like this are not uncommon to law enforcement officers working the drug beat, says Vasquez, and it’s rewarding to hear that officers have made a difference. However, Vasquez emphasizes that community involvement and the involvement of parents will make the biggest difference among teens.

“Children of parents who to talk to their teens regularly about drug abuse are 42% less likely to use drugs than those who don’t,” Vasquez stated. “Yet only a quarter of teens report having these conversations. In San Angelo, local entities aim to raise that fraction and get people talking as part of the red ribbon campaign.

Some of those parents and children were present at Monday’s opening ceremony, as a choir from Ambleside, a local private Christian school, closed the happenings at the courthouse with a patriotic song sung for those in attendance. 

Other schools will have the opportunity to take part in Red Ribbon Week  as local organizations, such as the ADAC and Concho Valley CARES (Community, Action, Resources, Empowerment and Success) visit students to promote drug awareness and prevention in the area.

“As we see drug use in our community continue to rise, we need to take a stand and pledge to make a difference,” Vasquez said. “Pledge to bring those numbers down, pledge to save our children.”

Red Ribbon Week runs from Oct. 28 to Nov. 1.