Crime & Safety
County D.A.R.E. Officer Receives National Honor
Rockwood's 2011 proposal to drop the D.A.R.E program set off a storm of controversy.
Officer Kathy Kelly has been chosen as the National 2012 Drug Abuse Resistance Education (D.A.R.E.) Officer of the Year. On Wednesday, Kelly received the award at the DARE America annual conference and ceremony in Atlanta. St. Louis County Police Chief Tim Fitch also was present at the ceremony.
Kelly was one of the program's representatives at a 2011 Rockwood School District board meeting
Kelly joined the St. Louis County Police Department in 1985 and became a D.A.R.E. Officer in 1991. She was named Missouri D.A.R.E. Officer of the year in 2008. She was nominated for the national award by representatives from the Missouri and regional chapters of DARE America and the Missouri Police Chiefs Association.