Briefly in the news

For most people, pennies pile up somewhere -- a desk drawer, the

bottom of a purse or perhaps a jar.

A solution is here in the form of the second annual Huntington Beach

Pennies for Prevention Campaign, a monthlong fund-raiser for local drug

prevention programs.

The program attempts to raise community awareness about drug

prevention and get citizens involved.

Huntington Beach residents are being asked to collect their pennies in

a container and bring them to various drop-off sites in the city during

October.

Drop off sites include: the Huntington Beach Police Department and

substations, City Hall, community centers and 30 public and private

schools. People can also bring their pennies on the final day of the

program to the Bank of America in the Five Points Shopping Center on the

corner of Main Street and Delaware Way from 11 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Friday

Oct. 26.

The donations will help the Drug Abuse Resistance Education Program,

the “Every 15-Minutes” anti-drinking and driving program, the Youth

Summit and Red Ribbon Week.

For every pound of pennies brought at the school drop-off sites, $1

will stay at the school for drug prevention programs. Three tons of

pennies equaling $12,000 were raised last year. This year’s goal is to

raise $15,000.