Death by motor vehicle must be taken seriously and students need to realize it could happen to them. Distracted driving is an epidemic that cannot be ignored, and Millbrook High School refuses to turn a blind eye.

 This past Wednesday, April 18, the PTSA along with faculty and staff brought the Alive at 25 program to Millbrook for the first time. Juniors and seniors gathered in the football stadium while freshmen and sophomores watched a live stream of the assembly.

 The morning started out with an announcement over the intercom informing students that North Carolina has the second highest amount of deaths by motor vehicle, falling behind Texas which has triple North Carolina’s amount. Driving while intoxicated was formerly the leading cause of motor vehicle deaths, but recently driving while texting and engaging in other distractions has topped that. Two students dressed as grim reapers went into a few classrooms and removed kids to demonstrate to students how it feels to have a classmate here one moment and then to be gone without notice.

 Other student volunteers dressed in all black with white ghostly faces and gory fake wounds. At the outdoor assembly that took place during fourth period, they put on a very realistic car wreck simulation that was extremely eye-opening for many students. Spectators witnessed real first responders (police, followed by fire trucks, and lastly an EMS) answering to a 911 call made by one of the students involved in the fictional wreck. All of the people in the car wreck simulation were Millbrook students, which made it all the more realistic. The scenario played out to us consisted of five students who were all hanging out and drinking beer. Each one of them with their whole future ahead. It was nearing time to leave, as one of the girls had a curfew. The driver of the car had drank three beers but refused to let the only sober friend drive. He claimed that he was fine to drive and had only drank two beers. Due to this unwise decision, he will forever have to live partially paralyzed, but even worse, with the guilt of killing one of his friends and severely injuring three others.

 The speaker for the event was Jack Molloy, Millbrook High School graduate. Jack, now 21, lost his older sister when he was only 15. Elizabeth Molloy was 17 years old when she died tragically in a car accident. Elizabeth was at a party when she witnessed, and subsequently followed, a boy outside directly after he was  kicked out for having too much to drink. After talking to the boy for awhile, who was 16 at the time, she got in the passenger seat and decided to leave the party with him. They were near the intersection of Rainwater Road and Bellechasse drive when they crashed into a tree just after 2 a.m. The speed limit was 35 mph but a wreck report revealed the driver was going 75 mph and neither of them were wearing a seatbelt. The driver faced several charges following the incident, but nothing comparable to the death of a friend, sister, and child.

 Molloy earnestly stated, “Unfortunately, it took her dying for me realize how much she really meant to me. Because at the age of 15 you don’t really spend too much time thinking of how important the people around you are. And you don’t really spend too much time talking about it.” He admits his biggest regret was not telling her how important she was not only to him, but to everyone around her. The context of his message is to know that you are important and valued by others. Molloy used his story in hopes to encourage students to make wise decisions  regarding their safety, as well as their friends, while driving.

 The timing of this event was no coincidence. Those coordinating the event wanted it to occur before prom so that the importance of safe driving is fresh on students minds. Distracted driving is not to be taken lightly; it only takes five seconds of inattention for a devastating and life altering accident to occur.

Gallery • 12 Photos

G. Copeland

Carrying out an intensely realistic car wreck simulation, Millbrook students demonstrate the tragedy that is very probable to occur as a result of distracted or intoxicated driving. Speaker Jack Molloy shares the story of losing his sister to drunk driving in hopes to make students realize the importance of attentive driving and careful decision making.