Driving home a lesson

By TIM PRESTON
The Independent

CANNONSBURG May 09, 2008 12:22 pm

— Boyd County High School students didn’t say a word, although a few did cry, as they heard stories about the ways a dozen fellow juniors and seniors died in the days before prom season.
The Ghost Out was a nonlethal lesson about death, designed to make an impression on young people who are likely to soon face decisions about drugs, alcohol and their personal responsibility when driving. The program is coordinated by the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet Office of Highway Safety.
The randomly chosen “victims” had to write their own obituary, which was read by Boyd Circuit Judge Marc I. Rosen after each was laid upon the floor and covered with a sheet.
“It’s really hard writing your own obit,” said Jessica Laney, 17.
“I cried writing mine,” added fellow student Jessica Hawkey, 19, whose death story included the recent birth of a child with another of the day’s victims.
Waiting for their moment before classmates, all of the “deceased” students — Laney, Hawkey, Jessica Stergeon, 17; C.D. Mayhew, 18; Zach Wilson, 17; Jordan Stevens, 18; Adam Cordial, 18; Garret Gullett, 18; Tosha Mullett, 17; Sarah White, 18; Rainey Mosely, 17, and Wendy Sperry, 18 — agreed it is a message worthy of attention.
“Don’t drink and drive,” one said as another followed quickly with, “Be careful for others,” and another added, “Be more aware when you are on the road.”
Stergeon, the final student to be touched by the Grim Reaper, raised her hand to the black-robed specter and loudly said “No,” as she grabbed a telephone to call her mother for a ride. The decision allowed her to continue living.
School Safety Director Richard Cyrus, who is also chief of the nearby Cannonsburg Volunteer Fire Department, also shared his experiences with the students, recalling a 1978 auto accident that claimed the lives of two of his friends, as well as more recent events involving young drivers.
On the way out of the gym, each of the students was asked to look into a casket near the door provided by Steen Funeral Homes. Driving home the point of the presentation, all who looked inside saw their own reflection in a mirror.
TIM PRESTON can be reached at tpreston@dailyindependent.com or at (606) 326-2651.

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