A group of White Pines Collegiate students have dedicated themselves to raising and spreading awareness about the dangers of impaired and distracted driving.
Four Grade 11 students - Ethan Kutcher, Jordyn Stadnisky, Ty Walls and Cameron Ciotti - appeared before Algoma District School Board officials at a Tuesday board meeting to speak about Ontario Students Against Impaired Driving activities being held at White Pines this week.
Students brought long paper chains - part of a ‘Chain of Life’ - and placed them on the desks of ADSB administrators at Tuesday’s meeting.
Links in the chains came from students at White Pines and other ADSB schools to show a sense of solidarity in raising awareness of the dangers of being impaired at the wheel.
“It represents community and connectivity,” said Ciotti, who is also an ADSB student trustee.
Each piece of paper in the chain had a written pledge from ADSB students to raise awareness about the risks of impaired and distracted driving.
The strongest element of this week’s OSAID activities involved a Zoom call from British Columbia to White Pines students from Kevin Brooks, the survivor of an impaired driving collision.
Brooks drank and drove one fateful evening, crashed his vehicle and suffered a spine injury.
He hasn’t been able to walk since.
His friend died in the collision, leaving Brooks feeling suicidal for months as he lay in a hospital bed.
“He really thought that he wanted to end his life because he didn't know how to cope with it. He was paralyzed from the waist down but due to determination he really powered through it and now he goes across North America to tour and tell his story,” Ciotti told reporters after Tuesday’s meeting.
Brooks’ story had a huge impact on local students.
“I thought it was very powerful because when we have speakers they're not always as young as he is. Everyone was impacted by this tremendously because it's such a heavy subject . . . we were happy that he impacted our students so well,” Ciotti said.
Other OSAID activities at White Pines this week include opportunities for students to wear special glasses that distort vision to demonstrate the danger of impaired driving, a Mothers Against Drunk Driving film and a cautionary but friendly visit from Sault Police officers.
“These students are not just sitting in classrooms. They've been connecting with other schools, posting events, sharing resources, and creating conversations that matter," said White Pines teacher Scott MacDonald at Tuesday’s meeting.
"They are living proof that you don't have to be old enough to rent a car to help keep people safe in one."