MADD membership encouraged

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For president Clyde Cooke of Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) and his 20-member Begetekong MADD chapter at Ojibways of the Pic River First Nation, the holiday season is usually a time to be out in full force stressing why you should not drive while impaired. Cooke said that since the chapter's inception on May 26, 2000 they've been responsible for a tremendous amount of awareness, not only for MADD but also as a First Nation.

"We are the first ever First Nation community across Canada to join the MADD chapter group. It is great and excellent being a part of this chapter. It definitely gives the other members and me an opportunity to meet other people from all across Canada who have the same goal. We not only create an awareness about drinking and driving to the First Nation people in this area, but we also create an awareness to the non-Aboriginal people that (we) are also concerned about drinking and driving and that we as Aboriginal people can also make a difference. I would like to encourage other First Nation communities to get involved with this chapter; it is very rewarding work."

Ojibways of the Pic River First Nation has about 460 members on the reserve near the town of Marathon. Cooke said it began when six concerned band members on his reserve started a Parents Against Substance Abuse group, and found that they were not making much of a difference because their message was only being heard on the reserve. They believed that band members living in nearby communities also had to hear about motor vehicle accidents caused by impaired driving, so they decided to join a bigger organization.

Their chapter's area covers Pic Mobert First Nation, which has about 300 members living on-reserve, and Marathon itself.

"Our goal is to stop impaired drivers by creating awareness that driving while impaired hurts everyone, not just the driver. We are getting the message out there-so far we've been really successful," he said.

They get involved in several events for MADD, including putting up posters in local community halls, mall displays, school visits and the 'Tie One On for Safety' Red Ribbon Campaign.

On Nov. 21, the chapter visited the Manitouwadge high school in Manitouwadge to do a presentation about drinking and driving. Cooke said that the Red Ribbon Campaign is important, because it shows the community which people are committed to stopping impaired driving.

"Tie your red ribbon to a vehicle as a reminder to drive sober throughout the year," said Cooke. He added that he hopes people will do this to help create an awareness of not drinking and driving, "because we are hoping to see more community members getting involved with us (and also) people outside the community. We also want to bring more outside resources such as workshops, motivational speakers and videos to reach the youth," he said.

Cooke, 52, said his wife Jennifer-who is a National Native Alcohol and Drug Abuse Awareness Program (NAADAP) worker on the reserve-is really supportive of what he does.

"I haven't drank for more than 25 years, and this is my way of telling people that you can still live a good life without drinking or doing drugs. That by being a sober person you can have a normal healthy life that you do not need alcohol or drugs to make you happy or to have fun," he said.

Cooke said that he is aware that they probably won't keep all impaired drivers off the road, but he hopes that once they've created as much awareness as they can, things may change.

"It is definitely not worth it for a person to drive while impaired, because it not only affects a person when being in an accident but it is also considered a criminal offence and the fines the person has to pay can be in the thousands," he said.