Drug prevention efforts ‘grow’ in Battle Ground

BATTLE GROUND —Battle Ground will bloom with tulips next spring as part of an October anti-drug campaign.

For the past several years, Prevent Together: Battle Ground Prevention Alliance has gathered a small group of youths to “plant the promise” during Red Ribbon Week. This tradition involves planting red tulip bulbs which bloom in the spring and serve as a physical reminder of the importance and beauty of a drug-free life.

Last year, Prevent Together’s youth group, the DREAM Team, partnered with Lewis River Rotary to plant tulips in Battle Ground’s Central Park. This year, Lewis River Rotary, with help from the Battle Ground Public Works department, doubled the park’s tulip bed along Main Street, which allowed the DREAM Team to plant an additional 200 red tulip bulbs.

In addition, youths from Rocksolid Community Teen Center planted 175 red tulip bulbs at Kiwanis Park with help from Prevent Together and iQ Credit Union, which has formally adopted the park.

Cub Scout Pack 443 was also involved with Red Ribbon Week activities. The scouts, who range in age from 6 to 11 years old, learned about prescription medication safety to earn the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency’s Red Ribbon Week Patch. The pack, which has adopted Fairgrounds Park next to the Battle Ground Community Center, included tulip planting as part of its regular community service. Twenty-eight scouts in all participated, planting 225 red tulips along Main Street at the Community Center.