Dear Editor,

Several years ago, wanting to prevent the use of drugs by children in our county, the then Martins Ferry Police Chief, John McFarland initiated a program in Belmont County that would provide Middle school and High School students an incentive to staying drug free.

The original program, although it was a great program, had a large overhead cost that the committee at the time thought was too expensive for students and thus prevented them from signing up as many families who couldn’t afford the $20 fee at the time.

As a result, the committee members hit the streets and with the help of Wheeling Hospital and several generous donors, they were able to get the cost down to $5.00 a student. This made a great difference for a lot of the families of the children, but it still deterred students from joining.

As the program grew, the Belmont County Juvenile Court district took over the management of the club. Where the members of the Belmont County Friends of Juvenile Court oversee the organization of the program, it is still basically supported by donations from the community and now students no longer must pay to join.

To make this happen, and continue the financial support for this program, the Friends of Belmont County Juvenile court along with the Classy Chassis Car Club will be sponsoring a car show at the Ohio Valley Mall on Saturday, September 9th . Registration fee is $10 per vehicle. There will be dash plaques for the first 250 registrants and free T-shirts to the first 150 Staying Clean Club Members. There will be music and a 50/50 drawing.

In the past, the club has taken this money to provide perks for the student members as well as defray the cost of the drug testing. These perks have included events such as a county-wide picnic at Barkcamp, bowling, Chick-fil-A lunches, and pizza parties to name a few.

So, if you’re not busy on Saturday September 9th, please come to the mall and show your support for this great program and for our students. Of course, donations are always welcome!

Vicki Falcone

High School Counselor

Bridgeport High School