The Grim Reaper, wrecked vehicles, fire trucks, ambulances, police officers, a medical helicopter and a funeral service will set the scene for a program on the dangers of impaired driving at two county high schools this week.
Students at Friendswood High School and Santa Fe High School will become “victims” of a traffic crash in a two-day program, “Shattered Dreams.”
Friendswood’s version will concentrate on drunken driving, while the message at Santa Fe will be that texting while driving is just as dangerous.
Friendswood first used the underage-drinking and impaired-driving-prevention program in 2008, when according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Texas’ alcohol-impaired fatality crashes numbered 4,491.
In each case, the drama plays out a traffic crash, complete with police and EMS response, emergency-room treatment, family notifications and the arrest and booking of the driver responsible for the incident.
The crash-scene drama is played out before students during the school day, with elements of the story gradually unfolding to enhance their understanding of the gruesome reality of crash deaths caused by irresponsible behavior.
Periodically, the Grim Reaper takes new “crash victims” out of class for transformation to symbolize death, before being returned to continue their lessons. By the end of the day, every class in the school has at least one “dead” student.
Friendswood’s program, which is open to students’ family members, will begin at 10 a.m. Monday on Greenbriar, directly in front of the high school.
Greenbriar will be closed to traffic between Castlewood and Mustang for two hours from 9:30 a.m., during which time parents and students driving to the school will need to use Falling Leaf to approach it from Mustang.
Santa Fe’s program, starting Wednesday morning will feature two “dead” students, one of whom will be “buried” and the other “cremated” during a memorial service Thursday.
“We will even have a casket and an urn from a funeral home to reinforce the importance of the program,” the school’s program coordinator, Steve Rose, said.
“It’s a critical message and just about the whole community is involved.”
Friendswood High School’s program will begin Monday.
For information, call the school’s associate principal, Dayna Owen, at 281 482-3413.
Santa Fe High School’s program will start Wednesday. For information, call Rose at 936-662-6978.
