Students at Concord High School were exposed during presentations on Tuesday to some of the events that could take place if they drive impaired or distracted.
The program Vehicle Injury Prevention for a Very Important Person (VIP for a VIP) visited the high school to inform the students about these consequences and ask them to make the right choices when they enter a vehicle.
The first presentation in the morning began with local emergency responders speaking to the students about the tragic scenes they have witnessed as the results of bad choices.
“I wanted to share with them the reality that…they could be vulnerable to either their distractibility or the distractibility of others,” said Will Cannon, a paramedic for Cabarrus County Emergency Medical Services. “Anyone in my profession has seen the effects of accidents and loss of life. Anything that can be said or done to reduce that is worth it.”
The morning presentation also included several videos with statistics and scenes from real-life accidents. Inside the school gym, there was also a casket with a cloth over it and wreaths on either side of it.
“The main point is it’s not about them,” said Mike Carlson, program coordinator for VIP for a VIP. “If something happens to them, they need to think about who they left behind.”
In the afternoon, students witnessed a portrayal of an accident scene involving a teenager who drank and drove distracted and the local emergency responders who try unsuccessfully to save him.
“It’s not a video game,” said Kelly Grooms, program coordinator for VIP for a VIP, in the morning presentation. “You can’t go, ‘Man, I wish I could take that back.’ But now, you can’t say you didn’t know.”
Several students said the scenes were scary to see, and the messages about not texting and driving and putting on their seatbelts would stick with them.
“I connected to it because my cousin died in a car accident because the driver was playing around,” said senior Jamaria Boyce. “This is serious.”
Senior Mason Croley agreed.
“One second could change not just your life, but everyone around you in your community,” Croley said.
Concord High Principal Carla Black said the presentation was the most powerful one of its kind that she had ever seen.
“To see these kids that captured with the images, I’ve never seen it like that before,” Black said. “These are real people, real accidents, real reflections.”
She told the students at the conclusion of the morning presentation that she did not want any of them to be among the statistics they heard.
“We’ve lost our share of students in this county,” Black said later. “I think (this) should be at every high school…Texting, anything that distracts them from paying attention to driving is not worth a life.”
Contact reporter Jessica Groover: 704-789-9152
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