Be sure to dress up as well as participate in the LTAs hosted in the bowl. Graphic courtesy of Sandra Onby Kyle Nguyen, Staff Writer
To help discourage drug use among Fountain Valley students, Friday Night Live (FNL) is hosting its annual Red Ribbon Week with lunchtime activities (LTAs) and dress-up days through Oct. 21-23.
The history of Red Ribbon Week dates back to when Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Officer Enrique “Kiki” Camarena had been kidnapped, tortured and murdered while working undercover in Guadalajara, Mexico for four years. His valiant efforts, however, helped to uncover a multi-million dollar narcotics operation and since then, red ribbons had become the symbol for drug-use prevention.
Being the main club that centers around anti-drug use and healthy habits among teens, FNL has hosted Red Ribbon Week for as long as club President Leah Phillips (‘16) can remember. Phillips also goes to describe the other events that FNL hosts to further spread anti-drug awareness.
“Among the events that we do host, we do Red Ribbon Week, we participate in Casey’s Pledge, which is a pledge [made] by students to be safe and to not [partake] in distracted driving, specifically drunk driving and we also do a talent show,” said Phillips.
In creating the LTAs, FNL has chosen activities that play on the idea of no-drug use and that are simply fun for the student body. This year, in particular, the club has decided on a three-legged race, juice pong and a pledge involving a hand-prints poster. Phillips further describes the symbolism the upcoming dress days.
“We have ‘Wake Up Wednesday’ so that’s a day where you wake up and see how much of a future you have without drugs. We also have “Check Yourself” for checkered clothing on Thursday and we have a “Red Out” on Friday,” said Phillips.
Altogether, Red Ribbon Week is a significant time of the year where students learn about the impact of drugs on one’s life and how to make smarter choices. According to Phillips, FNL works to give students an understanding that there are many other outlets as opposed to partying, drinking and doing drugs.
“There’s a lot of other things [students] can participate in that don’t necessarily involve the peer pressure that come with drinking and drugs, so we try to discourage that and we try to work towards giving them a safer outlet and bringing awareness to the issue,” said Phillips.
