Jim Pelton has seen firsthand the effect that drugs can have on a family, and he wants to be sure that others don’t experience the same.

Pelton, who had a family member deal with substance abuse for four years, started A Drug Free Kid, a group that provides drug-testing kits to parents.

The Bow resident has donated kits to the Bow Police Department, and parents can obtain the kits for free, no questions asked.

“Parents need to smarten up. There are too many parents who are saying ‘Not my child.’ By taking charge, parents could be saving their child’s life,” Pelton said.

Bow Police Lt. Dave Girard agrees with Pelton when it comes to parents’ roles in preventing substance abuse.

“I think parents are the first line of defense in any sort of problem. They’re the most effective and have the most influence. The more they’re involved, the less likely it is that we get involved,” Girard said. “We’ll use every tool and resource available to us to combat substance abuse.”

Pelton said high school students aren’t the only age group that parents need to look out for when it comes to drugs.

“If they start talking to their kids once they enter middle school and have these drug kits, they are able to work together, and kids know they have an agreement with their parents,” he said.

In addition to Bow, Pelton has also donated drug kits to five other towns, and has sold them to parents across the country.

A Drug Free Kid has also been a way for parents around the country to have someone to talk to.

“We get phone calls and deal with parents all over the place. We’ve gotten a lot of positive feedback and just being able to talk,” he said. “All we want to do is make a difference somewhere along the line and make an impact with the kids.”

Over recent months, Pelton said he e-mailed every school administrator in the state of New Hampshire to see if they had interest in making the kits available. He said he heard back from a very small number of schools.

“There’s a sign on our school property that say it’s a drug-free zone, but drugs are as much of a part of their education as reading, writing and arithmetic,” said Pelton. “No one is going to do anything about it unless parents do. No one is going to save their kids but them.”

Pelton said high school students aren’t the only ones being pressured with drugs. He recommends parents begin talking with their kids when they enter middle school.

“They may never use it (the drug kit), but the kids know it’s there,” said Pelton. “That way, kids have another reason to say no to peer pressure.”