Submitted by Landon Biehl – With the end of the school year approaching and summer almost in full swing, we are entering the season for celebrating graduation parties, weddings, birthday parties, and even Fourth of July events.

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While none of these activities require drinking alcohol to have a “good time,” most of us know that thousands of people who are of age (and some who aren’t) will drink alcohol and they will also decide to get behind the wheel of a car.

Drinking alcohol is socially acceptable, it’s encouraged, and it’s even expected of us. While communities throughout Texas, even Brownwood, continue to be personally affected by drunk driving, many people still view drunk driving as a “bad decision” that young people make.

As we well know, drunk drivers are dangerous. Even if a drunk driver doesn’t cause an accident, there is always the potential threat, and as drivers, we rarely know if the motorist in front of us or the one who is passing us in the next lane is under the influence.  

Drunk drivers don’t have a “type.” We could be hurt by a middle-aged mother who had too many glasses of wine at Happy Hour. We could be in an accident with a high school who drank illegally at a friend’s house. We could be killed by a grandmother of ten who has an undiagnosed drinking problem.

If Only The Stats Were Sobering Enough

In Texas, a motorist or passenger is injured or killed in an alcohol-related accident approximately every 20 minutes. According to the Texas Department of Transportation, in 2016, there were a total of 638 crashes in Brown County; 55 accidents involved a driver who was under the influence of alcohol.

How do we convince people to hand over the keys after they’ve had alcohol? How do we protect the ones we love from a preventable accident? Education is essential, and when the students of Brownwood High took part in the Shattered Dreams Event, people paid attention. Did the impact of the “all-too-real” presentation stick? 

Statistics and simulations do make an impact, but it’s easy for all of us to forget about it after a week or two.

One Person’s Experience Can Be Life Changing

Robert, a 22-year old, from League City was killed when an alleged drunk driver, who was speeding, failed to stay in his lane and hit Robert’s Jeep Wrangler. The impact of the crash rolled Robert’s vehicle and ejected him from the Jeep, resulting in fatal injuries. The other driver was not injured.

Many people might assume that a young man like Robert, just 22-years old, would be the irresponsible driver under the influence of alcohol. Instead, he was an innocent driver who may have been heading to work, a college class, or to visit a relative.

There are thousands of people, like Robert, who are affected by drunk drivers every year. Their experience is not just something that can be forgotten after a few days, a week, or even a year. If they are lucky enough to live through a tragic accident, they live with lifelong scars and trauma.

Whether you’ve driven drunk, survived a crash, or lost a loved a loved one, share your story. Your story might be the one that keeps a driver from taking a drink.

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