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By Corinne Fitzherbert

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Speak Up

It's a big screen that brings a big message. MADD or Mothers Against Drunk Driving were in the region last week using giant video screens to give maximum impact to their presentations to high school, middle school and elementary students.

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MADD was at Perth-Andover Middle School and Southern Victoria High School on Tuesday, April 29 before moving on to Donald Fraser Memorial School on April 30 and Grand Falls schools later in the day.

Although the programs are different for each age group, they share a common goal. MADD wants to make students aware of the dangers of combining alcohol and or drugs with the use of motor vehicles. Kevin Spahich, Eastern School Outreach Field Representative for MADD, noted the use of giant screens to convey the information captures the attention of students of all ages.

"The presentation for the middle and high school students is of course quite different from the elementary one," Spahich noted. "For the elementary students it is more about making wise and smart choices."

The presentation for older students is called Friday Night and is geared to those in Grades 7-12. It is set at a party where hosts address the "It will never happen to me" syndrome. They deliver some statistics on alcohol related teen deaths and the presentation cuts back and forth between the party, real-life victims and the hosts.

"At the party, we watch kids engage is risky behaviours including drinking games, mixing pot and alcohol, binge drinking and peer pressure," promotional material on the presentation states. "At specific moments in the scene where a bad decision is being made, we cut to a victim story that shows what happened when someone else was in a similar situation and made a bad choice. This is followed by the hosts who engage the audience and talk about what better choices could have been made to spare the horrible outcome."

Sharing the powerful stories of real victims who lost loved ones has an impact on the audience that MADD hopes will stay with them and prevent them not only from driving while impaired but also from getting into a vehicle where the driver is impaired.

For students in Grades 3-6, the presentation is called MADD Scientist and the Quest for Power. The MADD scientist introduces the concept that the brain, the heart and the guts are what give you power and he collects that power by listening to the stories of students and young people. For example, he talks to a student who called 9-1-1 when she suspected her school bus driver was impaired and he also interviews the founder of Free the Children, an organization that helps free child slaves, who talks about how kids have the power to make changes in the world.

The RCMP Safety Bear also makes an appearance to talk about the importance of wearing a seat belt and how to ride safely in a car or school bus. Children are told they can refuse to get into a car if they think the driver is impaired and that they should tell another adult about their concerns. If they can't avoid being in the vehicle, they should sit in the back seat and tell someone about their experience once they get to their destination.

The presentation also includes an interview with a boy who didn't tell anyone his older brothers were having a party while he and his mom were away. One of the older boys decided to go for a quick drive and was killed when he wrecked the car. The younger brother says he wishes he had told someone about the party because he knew his brothers were too young to drink alcohol.

While it may seem like a mature message for children, teachers say it is important elementary students hear it before they find themselves in similar situations. Since it started making presentations to high school students in 1994, MADD has been able to raise awareness in teens and provide them with safety strategies. A Carleton University survey found that more than 84 per cent of teens said they were less likely to drink and drive after seeing the presentation and 79 per cent were less likely to ride with a drinking driver.

Question and answer sessions follow the video presentations and students are encouraged to visit the www.madd.ca website. While MADD was started by moms who lost children to accidents involving alcohol or impaired drivers, Spahich stressed it is for everybody.

"You don't have to be a mother to be part of MADD," he said.