RAPID CITY, SD – Red Ribbon Week got underway Monday as students from several local schools gathered for the kickoff event displaying red banners signed by students pledging to be drug free.
Cricket Palmer, Red Ribbon Week Committee, Rapid City Optimist Club, said they expect to have about 12,500 signatures on the red banners at the event Monday.
“This is just one week but it’s an awareness campaign,” Palmer said. “This is a start. It gets them motivated… This is a message we need to continue telling our students about continuing to make good choices and staying drug free.”
Locally, Red Ribbon Week is sponsored by the Rapid City Optimist Club and local schools but the day is a nationwide event – the largest annual drug awareness and prevention campaign in the United States.
The 2026 Red Ribbon Week theme is ‘Make a Difference, Be a Hero, Stay Drug Free’. The kickoff event was held at the Minneluzahan Senior Center. Rapid City Mayor Jason Salamun shared the 2026 Red Ribbon Week Proclamation and joined in the events.
During the week, events include:
Deano in Red! The big dinosaur at Dinosaur Park will be displayed in red lights through Red Ribbon Week beginning Monday.
Mayor Salamun will speak at Pinedale Elementary School Thursday from 8:30-9 a.m. at the school’s Ribbon Week assembly.
‘Spooky Skate’: Rapid City’s Red Ribbon Week observance concludes with ‘Spooky Skate’, a free skating event on Halloween from 1-3:15 p.m. at the Roosevelt Park Ice Arena. ‘Spooky Skate’ includes free admission, free skate rentals, free pizza, fun and games and a costume contest. ‘Spooky Skate’ is hosted by the Rapid City Optimist Club, Roosevelt Park Ice Arena and Thrivent. There will be prizes for games and contests including punch passes for ice skating.
