Thanks to the continued support of the PEI Liquor Control Commission, students in a number of high schools across the province will learn about the dangers and consequences of impaired driving through MADD Canada’s School Assembly Program.
MADD Canada continues to seek a reduction in the number of young people being killed and injured as the result of impaired driving through its presentations during the 2012-13 school year. A powerful dramatization, Long Weekend depicts the tragic consequences resulting from a teenager’s decision to drive while impaired after partying at a summer cottage. While taking place in another part of the country, sadly this scenario is relevant to people across Canada. The presentation concludes with victims sharing their very personal and devastating stories with the audience.
“The PEI Liquor Control Commission is pleased to continue its support of MADD Canada and its work on impaired driving prevention in Prince Edward Island,” announced Hon. Robert Henderson, minister responsible for the PEI Liquor Control Commission. “Six Island high schools are currently scheduled to benefit from the PEILCC’s sponsorship during the week of February 11, 2013.”
Young drivers are at particularly high risk with road crashes representing the number one cause of teen death in Canada. Unfortunately, alcohol is a factor in approximately 50% of those crashes. “Reaching out to students and youth is crucial to our mission to stop impaired driving, because those age groups are at such increased risk,” said MADD Canada President Denise Dubyk. “Through Long Weekend, we hope to educate students and give them the facts and tools they need to make safe choices that help protect them and their peers from impaired driving.”
The School Assembly Program is one of MADD Canada’s largest and furthest-reaching programs. Long Weekend is expected to reach more than one million students across the country by the end of the 2012-2013 school year.
“MADD Canada is proud to continue its partnership with the PEI Liquor Control Commission to deliver this important program,” Ms. Dubyk said. “Thanks to their generous support, we can reach out to students in PEI to emphasize the risks of impaired driving and encourage safe and sober driving habits.”