RCMP recognizes four North Stars players for drug prevention work
Last October, four Battlefords North Stars players went to Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside for a weekend to see the effects of drug and alcohol abuse first-hand, an experience which they then spoke to local children about. This week, local RCMP officers recognized the players’ contributions.
Logan Nachtegaele, Kendall Fransoo, Connor Sych and Troy Gerein were all presented with framed certificates and RCMP hats Thursday, June 2 as a token of appreciation. Assistant Coach Braeden Johnson was also part of the trip, but was unable to attend this week’s event.
“These guys are the first SJHL team to participate in this,” Corporal Derek Eberle said. “We take players out to Vancouver and tour the lower east side where they have an opportunity to interact with people who are battling addictions. What they’re told out there they bring back and turn into classroom presentations.”
The idea was started by Odd Squad Productions in Vancouver in 1997 as a charitable organization that helps to deliver reality-based education on the consequences of engaging in risky behaviour to students in Vancouver. The project has now spread across the country. Eberle and Constable Colby Rennie of the North Battleford RCMP Detachment first approached the North Stars to team up and educate the youth.