Money received from auctioning items seized in drug-related cases is being used to help keep kids drug-free.
Last summer, the Warsaw Police Department held an auction of seized items, and part of the money was used to purchase a 2005 Chevrolet Trailblazer for the DARE program.
Once the silver SUV was purchased, custom graphics were added, matching it to the other DARE vehicle, a 2008 Dodge Charger. The graphics feature Daren the Lion, the national DARE mascot, as well as a ripping-claw design and the DARE logo. The back bumper has the local slogan "ROAR," which stands for respect, order, attitude and responsibility.
DARE Officer Joe Hawn drives the vehicle.
After the vehicle was purchased, the Warsaw Police Department used a $1,500 donation from the sale of the old DARE van that was used by Officer Terry Polston, a former DARE officer who lost his battle with cancer in 2008, to purchase a trailer to transport all the materials used during the program's graduation ceremonies and other events.
The trailer also sports the locally customized DARE graphics, logos and slogans.This school year marks the 20th anniversary for the DARE program in Warsaw Community Schools. Hawn and DARE Officer Doug Light currently serve eight schools in the Warsaw Community School Corp. That number will rise to nine when the renovated Claypool Elementary School opens in August.
For more information about the DARE program, visit www.dare.com
