This month, the town will hold another series of events to encourage youths to choose healthy lifestyles. Red Ribbon Week, a national movement that began in the mid-1980s to keep kids off drugs, will be observed throughout October, with motivational speeches, essay contests and giveaways at 10 schools in the Los Gatos districts. The actual Red Ribbon Week runs Oct. 23­31.

The theme at the elementary school level is "celebrate a healthy life," while students at the middle and high schools will be reminded that "friends don't let friends do drugs."

Unlike previous years, when the message was for kids to keep away from drugs to avoid suffering negative consequences, this year's focus will be on healthy alternatives to drug use.

"You want to celebrate being positive and make a big deal out of choosing to make healthy choices. We try to celebrate being positive rather than only focusing on the negatives as they happen," said Michelle Stanfill, an officer with the Los Gatos­Monte Sereno Police Department who teaches D.A.R.E. to fifth graders.

Organizers with Community Against Substance Abuse, a 20-year-old nonprofit organization in town that promotes healthy lifestyles and provides peer and parent support, lined up motivational speaker Tyler Durham to appear at Los Gatos High School on Oct. 8. Durham is known for integrating humor into the talks he gives.

"He motivates [students] more than the finger-wagging 'don't, don't' speeches do," said CASA co-chair Terri Trotter.

Fisher Middle School students can pledge to live a healthy life on Oct. 24 by joining Club Live during a lunchtime membership drive, with music provided by a DJ. Club Live is a statewide program that focuses on peer support.

"It's just a big party. The kids really celebrate having a healthy life," said CASA co-chairwoman Kathy Winkelman.

Throughout the month, schools will hold assemblies and arrange for visits from local law enforcement officers and firefighters.

CASA organizers are asking merchants to offer discounts or free items during Red Ribbon Week to students who walk into their stores wearing ribbons. Organizers are also encouraging car dealers to place their red cars at the front of their lots and to tie red ribbons to the antennas. Individuals can tie red ribbons around their yards.

Fifth to 12th graders can compete in an essay contest for a $50 prize. Contestants must write a letter to a role model and talk about decisions they've made or write a letter to someone they are concerned about.

Vicki Thorburn, co-chairwoman of Red Ribbon Week for CASA, said the death of Los Gatos High School senior Eric Quesada last November probably brought about a "heightened awareness" in the community of the choices that young people face. It is important to continue stressing that kids can engage in activities other than those that are detrimental to their well being, she said.

"It's one of those things where you have to keep plugging along and have to believe it makes a difference," she said.

Stanfill agrees that the message can't be stressed enough.

"You can never give too many reminders. If you can get the message out, that may be one less person who makes an unhealthy choice. Every little bit helps," she said.

Red Ribbon Week is a national campaign held each October in honor of Enrique Camerena, a Drug Enforcement Administration agent who was murdered by a drug trafficker in 1985.