From the windy playground at Westvale Elementary this week, 11-year-old Mike Hawker sheepishly admitted he knows a kid who smokes.
And it was with this kid in mind that Hawker took a deep breath, opened his mouth and yelled for nearly a minute with about 650 classmates Tuesday morning.Hawker's class was one of 25 from Westvale that wove themselves into a colorful "W" for its second-annual "Smoke Scream" event, held in conjunction with national Ribbon Week.
"On the count of three, you are going to raise your hands and scream as loud as you can," PTA President Deanna Bartling had instructed moments before from the rooftop overhead. "Because your lungs are healthy; because you don't smoke."
And scream they did; a big long, two- to three-breath scream loud enough that a neighbor or two in the sleepy West Jordan neighborhood wandered over to see what was going on.
Simultaneously designated as Ribbon Week, National School Bus Safety Week and America's Safe Schools Week, schools throughout the nation highlight some aspect of safety during Oct. 20-26.
Ribbon Week celebrates positive alternatives to substance abuse and violence.
On the Westvale playground Tuesday, the younger students seemed unsure what, exactly, they were screaming about. A jumble of 6-year-olds in Rebecca Prather's first-grade class offered some suggestions.
"It's for safety," one boy yelled. "No, it's so we'll be good," interrupted another. "Smoking's bad," said another.
The Red Ribbon campaign was born shortly after federal drug enforcement officer Enrique Camarena was murdered by drug traffickers in 1985. The red ribbon came to symbolize support for eliminating the demand for drugs.
In 1994, the focus was broadened to include prevention of violence, with purple ribbons symbolizing the commitment to a safe and healthy state.
Bartling said Westvale decided to target a no-smoking-healthy lungs message because research shows after a downturn in smoking, teenagers are beginning to light up again.
"It seems people are saying no to drugs but forgetting about the smoking. We really wanted to emphasize that smoking is bad, and how important it is to be away from people who smoke," she said.
Principal Ronald Jarrett says no one has brought any tobacco product to school this year but that it has happened in the past. It's not too early to give this message at the elementary level, he said.
Teachers spent a few minutes during the week talking about safety or drug and alcohol prevention.
"It's just fun," said Jeff Goff, 11, just before screaming time Tuesday. He's getting the message, he says, "that by smoking our lives will be pretty much ruined."
The hope is that students will take the message out of the classroom and into their homes and com-unities. "It's funny that kids are less afraid to say things than adults are," Bartling said. "Kids, sometime to the embarrassment of adults, will go up to someone and tell them not to smoke."
Throughout the Salt Lake Valley, schools and community groups have been creative in ways they celebrate the week.
- At Morningside Elementary in Granite School District, 80 percent of students' fathers have signed on for "Bring your Dad to School Day" Thursday. Morningside has an "Independence Day" theme, and all students will sign a special declaration that pledges independence from drugs, alcohol, smoking and violence.
Fathers or older brothers, uncles, grandfathers, mothers or surrogate fathers will attend a class and barbecue lunch with the students.
- Horizon Elementary in the Murray School District has scheduled a week full of activities ending with a Walk/Run Against Substance Abuse and Violence on Friday.