Mid-Buchanan hosts safety fair for Red Ribbon Week

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (News-Press NOW) -- A week-long celebration highlights the importance of living a drug-free lifestyle, while commemorating those who fight against drugs.

Oct 23. marks the start of the annual "Red Ribbon Week.".

The week was created to honor Enrique (Kiki) S. Camarena, a DEA special agent who was murdered in Mexico while investigating a drug cartel.

According to the United States Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), this week, youth and adults around the nation will pledge to increase their knowledge by learning more about the destructive effects of drug abuse, including prescription drug misuse, and renew their commitment to live a healthy, drug-free lifestyle.

Mid-Buchanan High School is hosting its first safety fair on Monday for its students during Red Ribbon Week.

The fair is available to 3rd through 12th graders. The fair included different emergency responders along with state departments.

Aubree Raines, a Mid-Bucanan High School counselor, said the district wanted to make Red Ribbon Week personal this year.

"So in the school year, we wanted to bring it home and make it more personal, getting our kids interacting with the different exhibitors here today, to take a little bit of info about each of the different areas of safety," Raines said.

The Buchanan County Drug Strike Force will be going to different areas in Northwest Missouri, as well.

Erica Tate, an investigator with the Buchanan County Sheriff’s Drug Strike Force, said they will also be going to different schools in Northwest Missouri, doing presentations on different topics.

"We do a lot of vaping prevention, tobacco cessation and we also talk about drug and alcohol use to different schools, Tate said.

Bridget Zabel, a Mid-Buchanan Middle School counselor, said that as the students get older, they have more unsupervised time.

“So if we can just teach them those lessons so they are making good choices when they're not supervised by adults all the time, when they're in groups with their peers, you know, that peer pressure definitely plays an effect as we start getting into older kids,” Zabel said.

Red Ribbon Week will run until Friday, Oct. 31.