Red Ribbon Week celebrations in Picatinny are inspired by Maya Angelou | Article

PICATINNY ARSENAL, NJ – Picatinny Arsenal officials celebrated Red Ribbon Week October 21-25 with several anti-drug awareness activities and events for employees and families, including one that facility officials had never held before, a family movie night in a nearby cinema.

“Red Ribbon Week, an initiative to combat drug and alcohol use disorders, has always emphasized the importance of finding healthy, alternative ways to deal with life’s challenges,” said Amy Gopel, alcohol program manager. and Substance Abuse at Picatinny Arsenal and Coordinator of the Employee Assistance Program.

“Although Red Ribbon Week is an annual campaign, our goal is to make it something far more meaningful,” Gopel said. “We held picnics, wore red, participated in the annual Trunk or Treat, and hosted more than 50 vendors at our health and wellness fair, but perhaps the most heartwarming moment was our Goonies family movie night.

The theme of this year’s Red Ribbon Week campaign was “Life is a Movie.”

“It encourages us to have a nice, drug- and alcohol-free time together, sharing memories and creating new ones,” Gopel said. “The Goonies, a beloved 80s adventure film about friendship and courage, is the perfect way to do just that!”

The Goonies film was shown free to Picatinny employees and family members on October 24 during an evening screening at the nearby AMC Theater in the Rockaway Townsquare Mall.

“Nearly 100 of our Picatinny community members and their families came together, some watching it again, others seeing it for the first time, but all sharing the joy of a nostalgic classic,” she said. “As we sat in the back, we were lucky enough to hear the laughter and giggles of families enjoying each other’s company – moments that were only possible through our collective efforts over the years.”

Earlier this year, Gopel became Picatinny’s first female recipient of the Stalwart Award, presented in 2003 by the U.S. Secretary of the Army to recognize individuals in the U.S. Army Installation Management Command (IMCOM) who have demonstrated the highest standards of performance, and done so in a significant manner contributes to the success and responsibility of the command.

In her role, Gopel leads a department focused on suicide prevention, employee support, preparedness and resiliency, drug testing, leadership development, inclusion and workplace cohesion.

The installation’s annual Red Ribbon campaign is one facet of the program that Gopel, along with her colleague Kristina William, tirelessly supports. The innovative new ideas and approaches that Gopel presents are inspired by one of the world’s most prominent civil rights activists and poets, the late Maya Angelou.

“As Maya Angelou said, ‘People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.’ Our desire is for our office to continue to be a safe place where community members feel comfortable and connected. Thank you to everyone who joined, participated and helped build our community. It may be a small effort, but as we know, even a small community, one step at a time, can make a big difference.”

The Red Ribbon Campaign began in 1985 when Enrique “Kiki” Camarena, a Marine Corps veteran and police officer turned Drug Enforcement Administration agent, was murdered by drug traffickers in Guadalajara, Mexico.

In 1990, the Department of Defense officially began conducting Red Ribbon Week to raise public awareness and mobilize communities to combat tobacco, alcohol and drug use among military personnel, civilians and their families.

Employees who believe they have an alcohol or substance use disorder should contact Gopel at 973-724-4357 or request a referral. All screenings are confidential.