LAKE COUNTY ? Team DUI is stepping up its efforts this holiday season to remind youth and the community of the consequences of drinking and driving.
Several new members have joined the team with new stories being shared with students in Lake County.
“Team DUI is working diligently to reach as many of our youth as possible this holiday season as the holidays have a tendency to increase drinking and driving. Members of Team DUI are sharing personal, sensitive stories to help our youth understand first-hand, that the choices they make have consequences,” Judy Thein, Team DUI founder said. “Through shared stories, holiday-related alcohol tragedies have emerged as one of the common denominators along with the realization that being a passenger in vehicle driven by a DUI driver holds severe consequences.”
Team DUI”s next presentation will be on Dec. 3 at the Highlands campus (formerly Oak Hill) where two presentations will reach as many as 150 students.
Rounding out the December schedule are presentations scheduled for Dec. 11 at Carl? High School and Dec. 15 at Lucerne Elementary School.
“Our main goal is to help our youth make better choices as they cope with the peer pressure associated with underage drinking and drug use,” Thein said.
“The sooner they learn that their decisions have consequences the safer their future will be. Education is power and the key to prevention.”
Thein said the number of presentations will increase this school year because the team has extended the program into middle schools. “We really want to grasp their attention as early as possible,” she said. “By taking this to the middle schools we have a better chance of getting this important message through to them before it becomes an issue in their lives.”
Team DUI operates entirely without funding. It is strictly volunteer with more than 40 local resource agencies dedicated to the effort. “We also have numerous individuals who aren”t associated with any agency that give straight from their hearts,” Thein said. “I”m elated with the growth Team DUI has experienced in its first three years. Although Team DUI has received numerous awards at the state level, we measure our success in the lives we have helped save and the many more that will be saved.”
A new panel of speakers highlights this year”s program. California Highway Patrol Officer Steven Tanguay is serving as the presentation leader and new storytellers include a local emergency room doctor, a devastated mother, Hilltop Recovery professionals and clients as well as emergency responders including Lake County Fire Protection District Battalion Chief Willie Sapeta. “Willie really connects with the students. He has a way of talking to them that really captures their attention,” Thein said. “We have a great presentation team in place eager to spread our message and each member of the team is vital to achieving the impact we are seeking. Not only do we have new speakers with new stories, but the stories that were shared in the past will continue to serve in the forefront of awareness in the prevention of underage drinking and driving.”
According to Drug Rehabs.org, it is estimated that between Thanksgiving and New Year”s Day, approximately 2,000 people are killed in alcohol-related traffic accidents.
Contact Denise Rockenstein at drockenstein@clearlakeobserver.com or call her directly at 994-6444, ext. 11.
