Crisp Co. celebrates “In My Drug Free Era” Red Ribbon Week

CORDELE, Ga. – Crisp County Primary School kicks off their week with a pledge to stay drug-free.

Along with other schools in Cordele, the city’s primary school launched its Red Ribbon Week program to remind students and the community about the importance of living drug-free.

This event features a week of themed activities, with each day offering a new theme for students to dress up and get involved.

“The biggest thing going on this week at school is our Red Ribbon Week poster contest. Every homeroom in our school gets to make their own Red Ribbon themed poster, and they submit it for a contest. We have people from the sheriff’s office in town and the city police department coming on Friday to judge which class made the best poster for each grade level. And, the winner wins free ice cream. So, they are very excited about that,” said Kayla Fitzgibbons, CCPS Kindergarten & 1st Grade Counselor.

Key figures from the Cordele community, including representatives from the Cordele-Crisp Chamber of Commerce, local officials, and leaders, gathered at Crisp County Primary School to deliver impactful messages encouraging a drug-free lifestyle.

The event concluded with a red ribbon cutting and a pledge recitation by the students, symbolizing the students’ commitment to making positive, healthy choices.

“Well… I think one of the most important things that I can do in my career as the chief law enforcement officer is to promote that drug-free lifestyle. You know, we see children sometimes that don’t understand what drug is bad for them. So, it’s important for us to set the right tone about drugs. That they all are bad. They all have some way of hurting your body and making you do things. And the consequences for the choice you make is a bad consequence a lot of times. When you’ve got a school system like the Crisp County School System that says, “hey, we’re going to stop for 45 minutes in the morning and we’re going to let you all come in and be a part of Red Ribbon Week and talk about it,” that is awesome,” said Sheriff Billy Hancock, Crisp Co. Sheriff’s Office.

Crisp County Primary School encourages students to commit to a drug-free lifestyle beyond just red ribbon week, encouraging them to make this pledge a lifelong endeavor.

“I think it’s important for us to initiate the conversation about things like substance abuse and living a healthy lifestyle and things such as that. Either we are going to initiate the conversation as well as parents at home, or they will learn from the world around them. Like on Tik Tok and the internet and from friends and things like that. So, I believe the earlier we can initiate that conversation with them, the better the foundation they’ll have,” said Fitzgibbons.

De’Andra Jacobs reporting.

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