Organizations join to prevent underage drinking at 2012 Revel
By: Nancy Cook
Updated: October 5, 2012
A new group will be welcoming many visitors attending the The Red River Revel Arts Festival this year, a group whose focus is on helping festival goers keep safe.
The Council on Alcoholism and Drug Abuse of Northwest Louisiana (CADA) has partnered with One Great River to greet attendees and scan driver's licenses of those wanting to drink alcohol.
According to CADA, this is the first time in the event's history ID's will be scanned.
"We have tons of volunteers working this weekend," said Jennifer Adams, CADA's director of Marketing and Development. "We'll have five to seven volunteers per shift, per day."
In all, Adams estimates 80 volunteers will help make sure that underage festival goers will not be drinking illegally.
Those wishing to purchase alcohol will receive a wristband and must show the wristband to vendors.
The Revel is the largest outdoor arts festival in North Louisiana. Each year it attracts approximately 180,000 people to the Shreveport river front.
Tammie Harris, program director for One Great River says it was the Revel's organizers who reached out to the volunteer groups for help.
"For many, many years we had a food booth that made money for a non-profit group, but we weren't going to do that this year," said Harris. "So we were contacted by Kevin Stone (Director of the Red River Revel) who asked to see if we could provide volunteers."
According to Harris, Stone reached out to the groups about six weeks ago.
The Revel will be held Saturday, Oct. 6 through Saturday, Oct. 13 on Festival Plaza and will feature more than 140 visual artists from throughout the country, children's activities, music, dancing along with great food and drink...Reported and written by Dan Jovic
