The past two weeks have been full of activities for Knox High School’s Students Against Destructive Decisions Program Director Carrie Stone. Last week was dedicated to the nationwide “Rock the Belt” campaign for raising seat belt awareness, and this week is the annual “Red Ribbon Week” to raise awareness on drug and alcohol abuse in high schools.
The main point that Stone brought forth about Red Ribbon Week was that teenagers are really ignorant to the fact that their brain is not yet fully developed. Therefore, they aren’t necessarily aware that they do not have the brain capacity to handle alcohol consumption. Red Ribbon Week is designed to bring that point to the attention of high school students. There will be a rock concert on Wednesday at the middle school for the students there and high school SADD members.
Last week, on the other hand, was Rock the Belt week. Stone felt that it was a great idea to hold this event based on the recent car-accident-related deaths of students Taylor Wagner and Drew Shearin. There were seat belt races held outside during lunch hours, where students raced to see who could run to the car and buckle up the fastest.
Stone was shocked at the number of students who admitted to not wearing a seat belt when they are in the car, and she emphasized how such a simple task can save lives on a daily basis. There were also many students who wore duct tape across their chests to show support of the Rock the Belt campaign. Last Wednesday, Kara Fuller came to speak to students about the importance of wearing a seat belt. Fuller’s appearance was graciously sponsored by Matt and Becky Bailey.
