MARINE CORPS LOGISTICS BASE BARSTOW, Calif. -- Red Ribbon Week is the longest running anti-drug campaign in America, and grew out of efforts to honor former Marine and Drug Enforcement Administration Special Agent Enrique Camarena following his kidnapping and brutal murder by drug traffickers in Mexico during 1985.
Recognized nationwide during the last week in October, Red Ribbon Week activities in Barstow, Calif., traditionally involve Marines and Civilian Marines from Marine Corps Logistics Base Barstow volunteering to do anti-drug shows, talks and campaigns for students at Barstow-area schools.
Manny Llanura is the Substance Abuse Counselor aboard MCLB Barstow who organized many of the activities to give students the knowledge they need to keep away from drugs.
Llanura, along with Headquarters Battalion enlisted leader 1st Sgt. Arthur Hernandez, and
Capt. Shawn Cash, commanding officer, Hq.Bn., attended the Red Ribbon Week kickoff breakfast at the Barstow Senior Citizens Center Oct. 21.
“All of the people who spoke at the breakfast are students who’ve had problems with drugs or alcohol and gotten the help they need to get off of them,” Llanura said.
“The whole point of Red Ribbon Week is to make kids aware of the dangers of drugs and how to stay away from them,” he said.
“When we spoke to the students at Montara Elementary School (Oct. 24) they were very excited and enthusiastic about the message we were delivering,” added the native of Baguio City, Philippines.
Staff Sergeant Arturo Padilla, Staff Noncommissioned Officer in Charge of Marine and Family Services, said Red Ribbon Week creates awareness of the effects of drugs and alcohol, and they back up that knowledge with some gifts for the students.
“We’re giving away water bottles for the older students and crayons and Red Ribbon Week coloring books to the elementary school students,” Padilla said.
The Chicago native added he was surprised at the level of knowledge the younger students had about Red Ribbon Week.
“They’re really energetic and know the purpose of Red Ribbon Week,” Padilla said. “Some of them know the story of Enrique Camarena, too.”
Some four-legged “volunteers” appeared at the schools during Red Ribbon Week as well when two horses from the Mounted Color Guard, the last remaining mounted ceremonial unit left in the Marine Corps stabled at MCLB Barstow, were brought on the visit.
“The (students) get to pet the horses and I tell them that this is what we do in the Marine Corps as the Mounted Color Guard, the best of the best. If we did drugs, we wouldn’t be able to do this,” said Gunnery Sgt. Michael Bate, SNCOIC, MCG.
“We need to keep the kids off drugs because they’re the future of America, and the fewer kids on drugs the better we’ll be later on,” added the Milford, Conn., native.
Aboard MCLB Barstow, Hq.Bn. SNCOIC of Operations and Training, Staff Sgt. Ruben Garcia, is the Substance Abuse Control Officer and the person a Marine is most likely to see first on their road to recovery from drug or alcohol abuse.
Garcia said he participated in organizing the off base Red Ribbon Week anti-drug activities as a way of giving back to the community and to project a strong, unified, positive message that will help Barstow to take a visible stand towards creating a drug free community.
“We are not (at MCLB Barstow) as just service members, but as members of the community,” Garcia said.
“We should definitely take an interest in the youth of the community and provide them a positive message about staying away from drug and alcohol abuse,” the San Antonio native added.
Lance Corporals Christopher Schmitt, of Nassau, N.Y., Andre Nelson, from Uniondale, N.Y., John Ordonez of Medellin, Colombia and Sgt. Daren Cole from Cibecue, Ariz., volunteered their time and efforts for the weeklong schedule of events at the schools.
The tradition of volunteerism by personnel at MCLB Barstow for Red Ribbon Week lives up to the high standards set by Marines at the base, according to Garcia.
“Even though we’re a small base, we do well above our share of volunteer work in the surrounding communities. The Marines give up their weekends, holidays and even leave to do this to get the message out about the dangers of drugs and alcohol,” he said.