Pot times July 19, 2005

Cole's Dare Dedication Honored

URL: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v05/n1143/a05.html
Newshawk: Herb

Pubdate: Fri, 15 Jul 2005
Source: Morris Daily Herald (IL)
Copyright: 2005 Morris Daily Herald
Contact: news@morrisdailyherald.com
Website: http://www.morrisdailyherald.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/3671
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/dare.htm (D.A.R.E.)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/youth.htm (Youth)

COLE'S DARE DEDICATION HONORED

Receives President's Award From State Group

Sgt.  Jeff Cole, the Drug Abuse Resistance Education officer for the Grundy County Sheriff's Department, has received a state award.

At the recent state meeting in Moline, Sgt.  Cole received the Illinois DARE Officers Association ( IDOA ) President's award.  Kim Frasier of Algonquin, the outgoing president of the IDOA, chose Sgt.  Cole for the honor.

The Grundy County Sheriff's Department has had a DARE program since 1989, serving the schools in the county outside of Morris and Coal City.  In December of 1991, Sgt.  Cole was named the department's full-time DARE officer.  After completing training, he taught his first DARE class in the spring of 1992.

Frasier, who is now past-president, said she began in DARE about the same time as Sgt.  Cole and, over the years, saw that he was involved in many of the same activities and attended many of the same meetings she did.

"Everywhere I went, I would see Jeff," she said "He is very dedicated to the program and has worked with the executive board."

"He is not only dedicated to the community, but also at the state level," she added.  Sgt.  Cole has served as Sergeant at Arms for the executive board, at the Midwest Regional Training Center, as a DARE mentor and, in 1997, a senior DARE mentor.

Sgt.  Cole said there are people who are "dreammakers," and for him, that person was the late Sheriff James Olson.  "He hired me as a deputy on my 28th birthday, and then made me the full-time DARE officer," said Cole.

Sheriff Olson, Cole said, was very dedicated to the DARE program and was one of the few sheriffs in the state to complete the DARE training program.

Sgt.  Cole said Sheriff Terry Marketti has continued that commitment to the DARE program.

"There are departments cutting the DARE program for financial reasons," Sgt.  Cole said.  "We are very fortunate here to have the commitment and support for the program."

Frasier noted the program is owned by DARE American in California.

"Sgt.  Cole has been willing to question the program ( with DARE America ), to ask why the program is the way it is.  There are not too many people out there willing to do that," she said.

Sgt.  Cole said the DARE program is designed for first-, third- and fifth-grade students, with the core curriculum presented to fifth graders.

As a full-time DARE officer for 14 years, Sgt.  Cole said he has been able to build a rapport with the students.  He noted the students in his first classes have now graduated from college, but many come back and talk to him about the program and what it meant to them.

Frasier said the award is only given in years when the president feels there is someone deserving of it.  For her term, there was no question Sgt.  Cole was deserving of the award, she said.