More than 20 members of Students Taking On Prevention watched a handful of skydivers land on Carson Valley Middle School's soccer field on Tuesday morning.
"The kids actually saw them jump out of the plane and watched them come down," said Amanda Johnson, a prevention coordinator with the Partnership of Community Resources, which oversees the STOP club. "The kids were beside themselves. The were very excited and couldn't believe it."
The jumpers were Josh Daniels, Jason Butler, Myk Christian and Sean Harrison, members of the High on Life Expo.
"The group was formed about a year ago, and we just now are getting our nonprofit status," said founder Sean Harrison. "We've had just under 10 jumps this year."
Harrison said the group was designed to teach kids the natural joys and thrills of life without drugs and alcohol. He said the idea stemmed from a meeting he sat in on last year between a juvenile counselor and juvenile delinquent.
"When asked why she was doing this stuff, this little 14-year-old girl said because there was nothing to do around here; and that really spurred me to start something," he said. "Basically, we put together this group to not only dive but to sit down and talk to kids about motivation. We know they may be struggling in their lives, but once they find their niche, once they get involved in something, they'll start making better choices."
Harrison found his niche jumping out of a plane six years ago.
"I'm actually petrified of heights," he said, "but it's such a beautiful sport, a life-changing sport. The very first time I did a tandem skydive I was hooked. There's so much spontaneity in it, and just these majestic views of the world. But it's also about team work and the comradeship you build."
Harrison, who has teenagers in the STOP, said skydiving always catches the interest of young people.
"Skydiving's a real thrill to kids," he said. "If a bunch of football players walk in, the kids will say 'ya, I've seen it before.' Skydiving catches the attention of a youngster, and we can build on that. We can motivate them to change their habits and move in the right direction."
Johnson said the STOP club has been meeting weekly as part of the Partnership's Teen Tuesday summer program.
"They've been working at Felix Pottery on the Ben's Bells ringing in kindness project," she said. "They've also been at All About Dance working on a prevention dance."
Johnson said the skydivers did more than jump from a plane.
"They told the kids stories about their struggles in life and how now they have an outlet through skydiving, the emotional, natural rush it gives them," she said. "They talked to the kids about passion, finding their passion and getting involved in something, whether music or drama or scuba diving, whatever gives them that natural high."
For more information about the STOP program, call the Partnership at 782-8611. For more information about High on Life, visit highonlifeexpo.org or call (775) 443-8513.
