Ocala Drive-In to host annual Red Ribbon kick off

The Ocala Drive-In Theatre is shown on South Pine Avenue south of Ocala, Fla. on Wednesday, August 4, 2021. The Ocala Drive-In is showing movies 7 days a week and is doing very well during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. John Watzke and his brother, Charlie, bought the 1948 old-school drive-in, completely remodeled it and brought it back to life in 2011. John Watzke is now the sole owner of the Ocala Drive-In Theatre. [Bruce Ackerman/Ocala Gazette] 2021.

The Ocala Drive-In movie theater will host a free movie night on Oct. 20 to kick off Red Ribbon Week, a campaign to encourage people to live drug-free.

The gates at the theater, 4850 S Pine Ave., will open at 5:30 p.m. and movie showtimes will start at dusk. Before the show begins, there will be a tailgating party complete with ice cream, a first responder vehicle expo, a bounce house, snow cones, vendors, games and a giveaway contest, all free of charge, according to the news release.

The event is hosted by the Community Council Against Substance Abuse. Each year, over 1,000 community members gather for the kickoff to help share the message of the power of living drug-free.