In the News

Project Red Ribbon urges sober driving
The Winnipeg Sun
By Chris Kitching
November 6, 2009

Doug Mowbray doesn't want another family to endure the kind of anguish he has been going through for six years.

So, he's dedicating his time to preventing the type of avoidable tragedy which claimed his 21-year-old son Patrick's life in May 2003.

But he needs help.

Mowbray is urging people not to drive impaired -- drunk or high -- and to help inebriated friends get home safe to save lives and spare families a lifetime of grief.

"I want to keep families safe," said Mowbray, president of Mothers Against Drunk Driving's Winnipeg chapter.

During the launch of MADD's annual Project Red Ribbon awareness campaign yesterday, Mowbray told his family's story and described the early-morning phone call telling him his son was dead.

"I sincerely hope it doesn't happen to you," Mowbray told a crowd at Kildonan Place Shopping Centre.

Red ribbons, a symbol of a commitment to being sober behind the wheel at all times, are being distributing now through the holiday season.

Mowbray keeps one on his keychain as a reminder of MADD's message and his son, who was a passenger in a car struck by a drunk driver, who also died.

Consequences

Despite being aware of the consequences and having the message repeatedly thrown in their faces, some people still choose to drive impaired.

"We just don't understand why people can't get it into their heads that they have the ability to stop (tragedies) from happening," said Winnipeg police patrol Sgt. Damian Turner, who's in charge of the service's impaired driving enforcement.

Turner said police have laid more impaired driving charges this year but it's not yet known if it's due to stepped-up enforcement or if more people are driving impaired.

The biggest offenders are people in their mid-20s to late 30s, Turner said.

Last year in Manitoba, 26 people died in crashes where impaired driving was a factor, said Andrew Swan, the province's new justice minister.

Also see...

MADD Canada's Project Red Ribbon campaign