Youth share message: Don't drink and drive

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Each yea,,more than 1,300 Canadians do not survive drinking and driving accidents. Organizers of the Canadian Youth Against Impaired Driving (CYAID) 13th annual conference collected 1,300 pairs of shoes to bring home the point -don't drink and drive. Over 600 students met in Regina, March 20 to 22, chanting "friends don't let friends drive drunk" so loudly that their message should carry back to their homes across Canada, from Prince Edward Island to British Columbia and the Northwest Territories.

Impaired driving is the leading criminal cause of death in Canada-at over twice the murder rate.

"As a collective group of strong and motivated students, we know we have the power to change attitudes and make drinking and driving socially unacceptable," said Crystal Fetter, SADD Saskatchewan president and CYAID 2003 spokesperson. "Conferences like this allow us to work together to show Canada that we stand united to achieve our goal of eliminating impaired drinking on our Canadian roads."

The message against impaired driving was echoed by teens like Anna Gardypie, 15 and a Grade 10 student from the Willow Cree Educational Complex on Beardy's and Okemasis First Nation. Gardypie is a senior princess representative of Beardy's and Okemasis, and member of the Willow Cree Dancers. The dancers not only took in the conference, but also treated the dignitaries, chaperones, speakers and conference participants with a performance during the event.

"There are about 40 participants from First Nations in Alberta and Saskatchewan attending the conference," Fetter said. "The First Nations students started getting involved a couple of years ago. It is nice to see that the message is spreading, it is working its way around."

Gardypie, who is also involved in Students Against Drunk Driving (SADD) at school, said, "We do all sorts of things. We put up signs up on our reserve and raffled a car for SADD. I'm hoping it makes a difference. I think it is working. For me, I don't drink at all. It is important for all students my age not to hop into a car with a drunk driver. They should either walk or find another ride or have a designated driver."

Barbara Gardypie, Anna's mother, takes bookings for the group and travels with the dancers. She was impressed with the CYAID conference message.

"As a parent, I think the conference is excellent. It is about time we educated our kids about the dangers of drinking and driving. I lost two brothers to it. The students are really into the conference and into the whole program. We have a SADD car in the car school parking lot, the students made 'don't drink and drive' signs and put them up on the main entrances to the reserve so whichever way you come in, you see the sign. We haven't known anyone who died of drinking and driving lately so I would like to say that SADD has had an impact."