New vehicles latest additions to fight against drugs

Newly modified vehicles in McNairy and Alcorn County and a new officer in the Tennessee county are 'daring' to help area children make positive
choices and avoid drugs and other dangerous activities.
The recently completed DARE vehicles in the two counties are part of efforts to draw attention to the program and get students excited about the lessons being taught through the effort. Both vehicles were purchased and equipped without the use of any taxpayer money through a combination of donated materials and labor and funds from drug seizures.
Alcorn County Sheriff's Department Deputy and DARE Officer David Derrick said for him the DARE program is all about showing the students there are adults out there who truly care about them and their futures.
"I love my children and I tell them that and I mean it," he said.
The eye-catching graphics on the vehicles were created by James "Clevey" White at BDS Advertising Solutions. Derrick explained his department's Chevy Tahoe was already in the county's fleet and they came up with the idea of turning it into a tool for attracting students to the DARE effort.
White and a student at Glendale Elementary School came up with the design for the graphics. Work was also done on the vehicle by High Profile Signs in Muscle Shoals, Ala. and chrome wheels and tinting were donated by Timbes Tire and Accessories in Burnsville. Donated equipment was also installed free of charge by Citizen's Page in Corinth.
McNairy County Sheriff Rickey Roten praised White and all the others involved in helping his department get their Ford Expedition accessorized and equipped, noting as in Alcorn, the project was done without the expenditure of any taxpayer money.
Roten noted he recently appointed a new DARE Officer in his department. James McNeil will teach the program to students in all the county schools.
The sheriff said he's been wanting to expand the program for some time and sees it as a great way to reach out to young people and catch them early before they have a chance to get involved with drugs and other negative behaviors.
"We're trying to stay involved enough to where we can stay in contact with as many kids as we can," he said.
Derrick, who teaches the DARE anti-drug and alcohol curriculum to more than 300 students in fifth grade throughout the Alcorn School District each year, said he hopes students will learn not only the dangers of alcohol, tobacco, drugs and other hazards, but the importance of making positive decisions in all areas of their lives. He also wants them to know they can always turn to him when they find themselves facing a problem.
"We talk about anything with them. It's just building a relationship," he said. Derrick said the two DARE programs plan to share information and hope to work together in the future to spread the message.