Students in Grades 1-12 across the district last week learned about drug and alcohol awareness, and risk prevention, as two multi-media presentations from Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) Canada toured the area.
But it was the older students, those in Grades 7-12, who seemed most greatly affected by the “real” message presented in the assembly show entitled “Friday Night.”
“I’ve never seen kids so quiet in all my life,” noted Hugh Dennis, co-ordinator of the Rainy River District Substance Abuse Prevention Team. “They were respectful and attentive.”
He explained the presentation depicted teenagers at a party where there is drugs and alcohol. It showed kids engaging in risky behaviour, like mixing drugs and alcohol, binge drinking, and being subjected to peer pressure to get into a car with an impaired driver.
“And it’s not just about the no drinking and driving message, it’s about the excessive consumption message and the dangers of it,” Dennis stressed, noting real-life stories from the families of victims in similar situations are intertwined throughout the presentation.
“Hopefully, students will learn what they can do in certain situations to keep themselves and others around them safe,” said Peter Treadwell of MADD Canada, who has been showing this presentation for the past two months.
“The kids react really well to it,” he added. “It’s a strong, powerful message.”
“It’s a very real message. Tough, but realistic,” echoed Dennis. “Some were very, very affected by it emotionally. People we’re tearing up, but it was a message the kids needed to hear.
“And my impression was they heard this loud and clear.”
Some of the real-life stories students heard included a 23-year-old girl who, although she was a huge advocate against impaired driving, got into a vehicle with an impaired driver.
When the vehicle went out of control, she was killed instantly.
The hosts discussed the question of “How much is ‘a drink’ of alcohol?” and how no two people will be affected by alcohol the same way.
Another real-life story told of the death of a young police officer from Nova Scotia whose vehicle was hit by an 18-year-old drunk driving while heading home from exercise training.
The police officer’s friend, who also was in the vehicle, survived but the injuries he incurred still affect him today.
The final real-life story didn’t have to do with drinking and driving, but simply drinking and walking home.
A 16-year-old from Stoney Creek, Ont. left a Friday night party to walk home, but never made it there. Instead, it was discovered on Sunday morning that he had drowned in a creek behind his home that wasn’t more than three feet deep.
The hosts in the show talked about drinking safety tips, and to plan ahead so teenagers are never put in difficult and dangerous situations.
“It shows average teens at a party and situations you guys have probably been in before,” Treadwell told the students. “People are having fun, but a good time can turn into a tragic time very quickly.
“We hope you will be able to learn from this and prevent something terrible from happening.”
Treadwell also recounted a conversation he had with a mother who had lost her son because of a drunk driver. Her story was shared in the presentation and Treadwell asked how she could share the worse event of her life with everyone.
“And she responded ‘The reason I share my pain is so you guys don’t have to suffer the same loss,’” he recalled.
Treadwell added in an interview later that he felt students in Rainy River District had learned from the message, especially when he had a student come up to him and thank him for the presentation afterwards.
“You know it’s touched a least one student . . . and that’s why we continue to fight drunk driving at every level,” he remarked.
Like “Friday Night,” “The MADD Scientist and the Quest for Power”—the presentation for students in Grades 1-6—was played across three large screens and set to contemporary music.
The elementary students were able to relate to the characters in the show, as well as its interactive nature.
“The MADD Scientist” explained to the students that the brain, heart, and guts are what give them the power—and that finding out how to get these things will earn them their “power badges.”
They also heard from a number of role models, including Miss Teen Canada International Haley Lang, founder of Free the Children Craig Keilburger, and Olympic kayak champion Adam Van Koeverden.
“Friday Night” was shown at Fort Frances High School last Wednesday while “The MADD Scientist and the Quest for Power” was presented at J.W. Walker on Thursday.
Both shows were offered at Donald Young School on Friday. They also were presented in Atikokan and Rainy River.
Students from other schools were bused to these locations.
The presentations were made possible by the Rainy River District Substance Abuse Prevention Team, in partnership with the Rainy River Valley Safety Coalition together with the Rainy River District School Board.
Fort Frances Times
Local News from Across the Rainy River District
