|
The message was too important to wait for nicer weather.
Bundled
up against biting wind and freezing temperatures, a group of local residents gathered
on the campus of Gonzaga University last Friday to talk about the dangers of driving
under the influence.
It was nine years ago that Jana Scherling's son,
Nicholas, was hit and killed by a drunken driver in Post Falls. He was 13. Scherling
talked about how Nicholas liked his bike and outdoor activities, how his sense
of humor brought a glow to family gatherings.
"He was the light
of the room," Sherling said.
Since the tragedy, Scherling has volunteered
with a victim's panel, speaking to D.U.I. offenders about the real-life risks
involved with impaired driving. By raising awareness, Scherling hopes to help
other avoid the pain she and her family have suffered.
"You have
to learn how to live again," she said.
By holding a numbered card
and relating her story, Scherling represented one of 21 reasons established by
the Greater Spokane Substance Abuse Council to never drive under the influence.
The "living billboard" includes a listing of facts that illustrate the
real-life damage caused by impaired driving.
The 14th reason - "It
won't happen to me" - included the story of Heather Fitzgerald who went to
a party while in high school and ended up getting in a car driven by someone who
had been drinking. Fitzgerald, who was also consuming alcohol that night, suffered
a broken pelvis, hip and foot and four neck fractures when the car swerved off
the road. Just two weeks before her high school graduation ceremony, she woke
up as a quadriplegic.
Over a decade later, Fitzgerald warns people of
risks from her wheelchair.
"It's because I chose alcohol,"
she said. "I didn't think it would happen to me. Unfortunately, I will pay
for it the rest of my life."
Now a graduate student at Eastern
Washington University, Fitzgerald speaks to groups about the impact of underage
drinking and impaired driving.
"A night out of drinking and partying
changed my life forever," she said. "It did happen to me."
In
Spokane County, 44 percent of vehicle collisions are related to substance abuse.
Just last Saturday, a suspected drunken driver was rushed to the hospital with
life-threatening injuries after his car plummeted down a 75-foot embankment near
Campbell and Trent.
Mike Mainer, an Emergency Room physician at Valley
Hospital, estimates that approximately 40 percent of accidents he sees can be
traced in some way to alcohol or substance abuse.
"As a doctor,
certainly I see consuming alcohol as a main risk taking behavior," Mainer
said.
Jeff Otis of the Washington State Patrol points out that alcohol-related
crashes are not accidents - that such occurrences can be prevented. Alcohol increases
the risk of trouble on the road by slowing reaction time, impairing vision and
interfering with judgment.
Linda Thompson, executive director of G.S.S.A.C.,
understands the grief of parents like Scherling who have lost children in drunken
driving incidents. In 1986, Thompson's 3-year-old son, Trevor, was struck and
killed by a drunken driver a month before his fourth birthday.
"People
need to know that when they drink and drive, lives are affected and changed -
and it's not only yours," Thompson said.
Speaking up about the
risks of impaired driving has helped Anita Kronvall cope with the death of her
daughter, Carla James, who was killed when a drunken driver crashed into her car
nearly five years ago.
Kronvall, who has been actively involved in
a successful movement to increase prison sentences for repeat drunken drivers
in Washington, said she channels her grief into awareness messages to prevent
future tragedies.
"It goes into prevention," she said. "I
don't think I would have adjusted at all if it wasn't for being involved in this."
As
usual, police will have extra patrols out during the holiday season, looking for
impaired drivers. Craig Chamberlain of the Washington State Patrol advised residents
to plan ahead and assign a designated driver or make sure a taxi is called to
ensure a safe ride home.
"It's all of us who need to work together
to stop the tragedy of impaired driving," Thompson said. "Not only during
the holidays, but always." Want to find out more? To read
the complete list of 21 reasons to E.N.D.U.I., visit www.gssacpreventioncenter.com.
To learn more about the D.U.I. Victim's Panel, call G.S.S.A.C. at 922-8383. Additional
resources are available at the Mothers Against Drunk Driving Web site at www.madd.org.
For information on drug and alcohol prevention and awareness, call the state,
24-hour toll-free helpline at 1-800-562-1240 or visit www.narconon.org.
Click
here to...
Subscribe to the Spokane Valley News Herald
| 
By
Craig Howard
