Red Ribbon Week Challenge Coins
Traditionally observed in the last week of October, Red Ribbon Week promotes a drug-free lifestyle and the importance of making good decisions.
Educators, you know how much Red Ribbon Week means to your school, and to students from kindergarten through high school. Custom Red Ribbon Week challenge coins are a great, innovative way to reward good decision making and promote enthusiastic participation in your school’s events.
The 2018 Red Ribbon theme of Life Is Your Journey, Travel Drug Free makes an ideal logo for a challenge coin. You can design your own school- or class-specific coins.
Red Ribbon Week History
Red Ribbon Week began as a way to honor the sacrifice of U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency Special Agent Enrique “Kiki” Camarena.
Born in Mexico, Camarena graduated from Calexico (California) High School in 1966,. He served two years in the U.S. Marine Corps. Following that, he served as a Calexico firefighter, police officer and Imperial County deputy sheriff. He joined the DEA in 1974.
In 1981, he was assigned to combat drug trafficking in Mexico, based in Guadalajara. Four years later, he was about to expose a multi-billion dollar drug ring when he was kidnapped, tortured and murdered. He was 37 years old and left behind a wife and three sons.
In response to Camarena’s death, citizens of Calexico began wearing red ribbons to honor him and promote opposition to illicit drugs. Backed by a Congressman and a teacher, “Camarena Clubs” sprang up in local schools. By 1988, the idea for Red Ribbon Week went national, and has been a fixture of schools across the country ever since.
Traditionally observed in the last week of October, Red Ribbon Week promotes a drug-free lifestyle and the importance of making good decisions.
Challenge Coins Help Reinforce Lesson Plans
Custom challenge coins are a terrific motivational tool. Present each student in your class with one at the end of the week to commemorate completion of the Red Ribbon Week activities. They serve as a reinforcement of the importance of making good choices in life. And it’s easy to design coins that are age-appropriate for any level from elementary through high school.
Give your students something they can keep, a tangible reminder that good things happen when you stay drug and alcohol-free. Recipients can carry their Red Ribbon Week challenge coins wherever they go. The coins give them something they can see and touch when confronted with difficult decisions. It’s a subtle way to remind students of the value of thinking for yourself.
Designing Red Ribbon Week Challenge Coins
The experienced artists at ChallengeCoins4Less.com will be happy to help you craft a design for your Red Ribbon Week coins. We will work with you to incorporate your desired images, colors and message into your coins in just the way you want. Remember, we never charge for art or revisions, so you can be sure your custom coins will look exactly the way you want them to.
Don’t forget, your coins don’t have to be round! We can make them into virtually any custom shape you can imagine. We’ll create challenge coins your students will be proud to carry or display as part of their commitment to live drug free.
Check out our gallery page for some great examples of challenge coin design. If you’d like to find out more about how Red Ribbon Week challenge coins can help inspire and empower your students, call us toll free at 855-272-8451, or email us at [email protected]. We’re always happy to answer any questions you might have!
