NATIONAL GUARD PLANS FIRST LOCK-IN FOR AREA SEVENTH GRADERS ON SATURDAY

The Missouri National Guard is hosting a lock-in Saturday night for Cape Girardeau seventh-graders.

The lock-in is the first such event planned in Missouri by the National Guard in its plan to become more involved in communities.

Tina Standridge, area family support group coordinator for the Missouri National Guard, said over 500 seventh grade students have been invited. They hope over 100 will attend.

The event begins at 6 p.m. Saturday and concludes at 7 a.m. Sunday at the National Guard Armory in Cape Girardeau.

Workshops featuring local speakers and speakers from Jefferson City will focus on drug use prevention, peer pressure and other related topics.

"We have peer counselors coming from the Cape high school to talk about peer pressure and what to expect as they get older," Standridge said.

In addition, food, movies and music are planned throughout the night.

"We also have lots of chaperones, including weekend guard members, full time guard members, wives and spouses," she said.

"We have planned two hours of information and then a lot of games, some music, some group activities, a pizza party, an ice cream party and breakfast," she said. "We hope it will be a lot of fun."

The lock-in is sponsored by the Missouri National Guard, it's Family Program and Drug Demand Reduction Program, the Cape Girardeau Traffic Safety Council, Dare, in cooperation with the Drug Free Schools and Communities.

Standridge said local business have donated many items, including food.

"If the response is good, we are looking at this to be an every month thing," Standridge said. "We want to give them an alternative activity for a Saturday night."

Standridge said the Missouri National Guard is interested in expanding its activities into the communities they serve.

"This is the first time something like this has ever been done in the state of Missouri," Standridge said. "The guard is trying to interlock with the communities. In the past, the family program has dealt with the families of guard members. Now we are branching out.

"Usually one weekend a month we have a guard drill," Standridge said. "We have not sponsored community-oriented events with the guard at the armory."

If response to the lock-in is good, she said, more events will be planned including some in other communities throughout the state.

For more information call Standridge at 339-5713 or call Peggy Quigg or Jamie Koehler with the Guard in Jefferson City at 1-800-488-0096.