In the News

Film warns students of cost of drunk driving
Telegraph-Journal
By Jon MacNeill
May 20,2010

QUISPAMSIS - Students at Kennebecasis Valley High School were given a graphic reminder Wednesday why drinking and driving shouldn't be included in their plans for graduation and prom.

The Saint John and area chapter of Mothers Against Drunk Driving presented a video to students depicting both the physical and emotional consequences of impaired driving.

"It's a powerful message," said Rick McNulty, president of the Saint John and area chapter of MADD.

"This is the time of year when they can use it. It's coming up to prom and grad time and hopefully students are going to make the right choices."

The video - entitled Wasted - is a dramatization of four young people's decision to drink and smoke marijuana while driving to a party. Their vehicle smashes into a tree and one passenger is killed while another endures serious head trauma.

The film ends with a number of testimonials from real-life victims of drunk driving.

"A picture is worth a thousand words, so by seeing the graphics of it and hearing from actual victims at the end of the video, it drives it home," said McNulty, whose daughter was killed three years ago by a drunk driver.

Over the last two weeks, the video was shown at 10 schools in the Greater Saint John area - including both valley high schools - as part of a national MADD program.

Madison Carroll, a Grade 11 student at KVHS and a member of Teens Against Drunk Driving, said the movie was sure to leave a lasting impression on students.

"It's very effective because you get to see the whole emotional attachment to everything," the Grade 11 student said, adding the video delves into the aftermath of the accident and how the driver must cope with the poor choices he made.