Kids learn to

The Just Say No movement began in the early 1980s during a visit of First Lady Nancy Reagan to an elementary school in Oakland, California. When asked how to respond to peer pressure regarding drugs and alcohol, Mrs. Reagan replied with the simple message: Just Say No.

   Following that visit, the students formed the first-ever Just Say No Club, and its message began to spread nationwide with Mrs. Reagan's support. Today, there are clubs like these throughout the country helping to steer young people in the right direction.

   North Elementary School formed its Just Say No Club in 2003 with about 40 third- and fourth-graders. The following year, fifth-and sixth-graders were invited to join, the sixth-graders acting as mentors to the younger students. The Just Say No Club offers students the opportunity to learn and talk about the dangers of drugs, alcohol, and smoking. Through various activities, the children not only learn how to say no to peer pressure and drugs, they also learn about social skills, "stranger danger," and even bike safety.

   Just Say No Clubs offer students the support, friendship, and fun they need to know that they are not alone. They can make a stand whenever someone offers them drugs, alcohol, or tobacco. They can "Just Say No."

   "The Just Say No Club has been an awesome adventure. In one year the membership has quadrupled," says Jodi Parsons, a social worker with Washington Community Schools. "We hope the influence on the young people's lives will carry into their adult years and help to slow the growth of drug-related difficulties in Daviess County."

   A grant from the Daviess County Community Foundation allowed the club to buy educational materials and Just Say No t-shirts for club members and volunteers.