Goshen, N.Y. - Orange County District Attorney David Hoovler and Chairman of the Legislature Steve Brescia treated fifth-grade Montgomery Elementary School students in the Drug Abuse Resistance Education (D.A.R.E.) program to a pizza party on Wednesday and played a game of kickball against the class.
Captain Paul Arteta of the Orange County Sheriff’s Office, Village of Montgomery D.A.R.E. police officer Jack Smith, Assistant District Attorneys from Hoovler’s office and representatives from the Alcoholism and Drug Abuse Council of Orange County (ADAC) also participated in the event.
“We all enjoyed spending time with the students, the faculty and the staff at Montgomery Elementary School,” Hoovler said. “These young men and women are role models for their peers and have a bright future. The Village of Montgomery Police and Montgomery Elementary School have done a wonderful job incorporating D.A.R.E into the curriculum and it has been a success.”
Launched in 1983, D.A.R.E. is a K-12 education program that addresses violence, bullying, internet safety, and other high-risk issues that can be a part of students’ lives. It is taught in thousands of schools in the U.S. and 52 other countries.
Hoovler met with Montgomery Elementary School’s D.A.R.E. graduation class in the spring of 2016. During that visit, he asked students if they knew who came up with the slogan “Just Say No.” Hoovler was surprised when a student answered “Nancy Reagan.” The answer earned that group a pizza party.
Two years ago, a student challenged Hoovler to a kickball game. He took them up on the challenge and put together a team. In the latest edition of the showdown on Wednesday, Hoovler pitched, Brescia played center field and Arteta played third base, before relieving the District Attorney on the mound. The students were given 20 outs and no score was kept, but Montgomery Elementary got the best of Team Orange County.
“We thank Montgomery Elementary School for being such great hosts,” Brescia said. “I also commend Jack Smith for doing such a great job with the D.A.R.E. program. D.A.R.E teaches students good decision-making and encourages them to live safe and healthy lives. I’m grateful that Montgomery Elementary School has incorporated D.A.R.E. into its curriculum. We all had a wonderful lunch and the kickball game was fun.”
For more information, contact Justin Rodriguez, Assistant to the County Executive for Communications and Media Relations at 845.291.3255 or jrodriguez@orangecountygov.com.
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