Hoosier initiative focuses on Indiana drug dangers, encourages school awareness efforts for Red Ribbon Week®

INDIANAPOLIS — Three organizations started by families whose children died of accidental drug overdoses are urging schools to participate in 2015 Red Ribbon Week® later this month.

The organizations – Sam's Watch, Brady’s Hope and Overdose Lifeline Inc. – are offering speakers to schools that want to raise awareness among their students of deadly synthetic drugs, prescription drugs and heroin. Red Ribbon Week is scheduled for Oct. 23-31.

The organizations, along with the Indianapolis office of the federal Drug Enforcement Administration and state Sen. James Merritt, have created a public service announcement for use by schools at sporting events and other gatherings during Red Ribbon Week.  

Each of the parent-led organizations also has short awareness videos available for schools:  SAMs Watch: Synthetic Drug Awareness, Brady’s Hope The Call: When Life Changes Forever, The Creation of Overdose-Lifeline and Aaron’s Law. 

“When it comes to emerging synthetic drugs, deadly prescription drug use and the growing epidemic around heroin, it isn’t just about saying no to drugs, it is about saving lives from poison,” said Sam’s Watch President Jeanine Motsay. Her son Sam, a 16-year-old Center Grove High School academic honors-athlete, died when he and his friends, experimenting with drugs they thought would not be detected by a random school drug test, were sold a synthetic hallucinogen, 25i-NBOMe, as LSD.   

Schools participating in Red Ribbon Week can register on the Sam’s Watch website with their planned participation details.  Sam’s Watch will select a participating school to receive a monetary award in recognition of its drug-awareness efforts. Any school seeking assistance to participate in Red Ribbon Week can email info@samswatch.org or phone 888-575-1015.

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