COSTA MESA : An Arresting Anti-Drug Program

Newport Beach Police Officer Greg Armstrong shook his head incredulously as dozens of sixth-graders stood in line waiting for his autograph.

“I feel like an L. A. Dodger,” Armstrong joked as he placed his suddenly popular signature on the backs of the red, white and blue T-shirts and caps that were given to more than 1,700 students who participated in a special Drug Abuse Resistance Education program graduation ceremony Thursday at the Pacific Amphitheatre.

The exuberant sixth-graders from 16 Newport Beach and Costa Mesa elementary schools moved gleefully from one booth to the next as they were treated to an afternoon of free gifts, food, entertainment and celebrities, including former Los Angeles Rams quarterback Vince Ferragamo. “This is our way of showing the kids that we really appreciate them staying drug-free,” said Darlene Bell, one of three Costa Mesa police officers who organized the event honoring the students who completed the 17-week anti-drug program.

Dozens of the officers from the Costa Mesa and Newport Beach police departments who participated in the event allowed the kids to sit inside their patrol cars or atop their motorcycles.

“Don’t mess with any of the switches or the sirens,” Armstrong warned as a couple of mischievous sixth-grade boys began fiddling with control switches inside his state-of-the-art patrol car.

Although Newport Beach Officer Kirk Jacobi, 29, didn’t have a patrol car or motorcycle to show off, he did have a customized bicycle that he uses on beach patrol.

Tom Rausch, 11, appeared to be impressed with Jacobi’s bike and police baton, but the youngster wondered aloud, “What the heck do you do with your bike if you catch a criminal?”

Several yards away, three members of the Costa Mesa Police Department’s SWAT team were busy signing autographs as they showed off a display of their weaponry.

Ben Courtney, 12, tentatively handled one of the sawed-off shotguns and said: “I don’t think I’d want their job. Most people think it would be cool, but I think it’d be scary. You have to have a lot of nerve to go in there like they do.”

The anti-drug program, which started in the Newport-Mesa Unified School District in 1989, employs three full-time police officers who make weekly visits to 16 schools throughout the year.

The officers attempt to fight drug abuse by teaching students about the negative effects of drugs and how to resist peer pressure.

“It’s a very valuable program,” said Mary McMenamin, a teacher at St. John’s Elementary School in Costa Mesa. “With programs like this, kids today can tell you about the bad effects of drugs and alcohol. They can give you reasons why it’s not a good idea to smoke, drink and take drugs, and they can encourage their families not to do those things.”