COMMUNITY 2000 SUPPORT CENTER TO HOLD TRAINING SESSION

"Music as a Prevention Tool in Drug Education" is the theme of the first Community 2000 Support Center training session.

The session will be held Oct. 22 in Cape Girardeau.

The program is for teachers, parents and elementary school-age children who are concerned about the problem of drug abuse.

Two nationally known motivational speakers and prevention specialists, Charlie Gorsuch and Lloyd Mabrey, will lead the program. Larry McCann, a Doniphan music teacher, also will participate.

The training session is scheduled for 9 a.m. to noon at the First Christian Church, 829 N. West End Blvd. Gorsuch and Mabrey will present workshops in the Jackson public schools on the morning of Oct. 21 and in the Cape Girardeau public schools that afternoon. Workshops will be presented at Bootheel schools on Oct. 24.

The presentations will include art, music, hands-on activities and positive messages, organizers said.

Gorsuch of Portland, Ore., is known as "Quick Draw Charlie," an artist/cartoonist with 14 years of experience in children's programming.

Mabrey of Grand Junction, Colo., is a singer, songwriter, story teller and guitarist. In 1980, he teamed up with Gorsuch to create the "Choose to Win" motivational program.

McCann has been an elementary school teacher in Doniphan for 15 years. He is also a published composer. He composed the music for the "Dare to Live" program, which features 30 minutes of music and skits with an anti-drug message.

The training sessions are being provided free as a service of the Community 2000 centers in Cape Girardeau, Kennett, Rolla and Poplar Bluff; the Department of Mental Health; the Division of Alcohol and Drug Abuse; and the Missouri Association of Community Task Forces.

The Community 2000 Support Center at Southeast Missouri State University was launched in January with a $187,500 three-year grant from the Missouri Department of Mental Health.

The center is assisting the cities of Cape Girardeau, Jackson, Fredericktown and Sikeston in assessing and developing substance abuse programs.