In an event that crossed age, language and cultural barriers, hundreds of Seventh-day Adventist young people and their families marched through the streets of Toronto on Thursday, July 6, to promote a drug-free future.
Chanting "Guns and drugs have got to go! Say hi, say no!" Pathfinders and Adventurers, dressed in their club uniforms, joined with many others in the grand finale of "Walk Around the World 2000." Caren Kouwenoord, a Toronto local, was out walking her dogs when she stopped to observe the sight. "It's good," she said, "I'm impressed because there are little ones out there learning how to be drug free."
The "Walk Around the World 2000" project was initiated during a meeting of the International Commission for Prevention of Alcoholism and Drug Dependency (ICPA) in 1995. ICPA members wanted to find innovative ways to keep young people drug-free and to encourage them to share their lifestyle with their peers. The project was launched in 1995 at the Adventist World Session in Utrecht, Holland. Since then, anti-drug marches have been organized in more than 100 countries. Participants obtain sponsors and collect funds for drug education program in the area where the march takes place.
Participants in the Toronto walk were optimistic and enthusiastic about the "Walk Around the World" march. Jermain, 17, a pathfinder from Berea Seventh-day Adventist Church, said "It makes the community aware of our stance on drugs and guns." Others, like first-time marcher Jennifer Boucaud from Trinidad, said "It provides information to local-area people. This is also another way to make those in the community realize the truth about drugs."
Neals Chitan, coordinator of this last march, has been involved in anti-drug events in the Metro Toronto area for more than ten years. According to Chitan, area residents, businesses and police have reported that there has been a positive change in the attitudes of the public in the areas where marches have taken place. |
