To our Cantabrian Students ...

A special message from our Christchurch based coordinator, Jess Edmonds

February 22^nd was a day that changed Christchurch forever. The ground was shaking, walls were moving and bricks were falling. Whether you were in the classroom, out at lunch or at home, it was a frightening day for all. Lives have been lost and our city has been broken, but as you have all heard over and over again our Cantabrian spirits have stayed strong!

I was lucky... 

Although my city office is a mess - my home, family and friends are all ok.  For me, after the dust had settled, it was normality that I sought above all things. Being in isolation in those first few days was lonely and all I wanted was for things to go back to ‘normal’. 

I had an overwhelming feeling of gratitude the first time a group of my friends and family gathered after the earthquake. Although they have always meant so much to me, I felt especially grateful on this day to have them in my life. 

When I started back at work for SADD, again I felt that gratitude, this time for still being able to do something I love. This small piece of normality in returning to work, helped me to move on. I know that each of you have your own stories – and some will be incredibly painful  – but I believe that we all may hold a common vision. A vision that sees Christchurch re-build and for Cantabrians to work together and move forward. 

A part of this phase of recovery. as we work towards rebuilding our great city, calls for each of us to carry on. To retain our passion for the things we love; to continue to work hard in school and at work, and most of all, to continue to strive to achieve our goals and dreams.

All of us at SADD are aware and understand that making conference this year may be a big ask for our Canterbury students - and this will be challenging for a number of reasons. However, if you would like to make the trip to Dunedin, to take that first step back into your SADD programmes - then we would love to hear from you!  

There is some support out there to help you make it to conference - so let us know if you would like to come and we might be able to help. Not only will conference give you a chance to be surrounded by your peers, your SADD friends, but it will also give you the opportunity to retain your passion and continue to work towards your goals - another chance to move forward in your life.

Equally, if there are just too many hurdles to attending conference, then know that we are here to support you in any ways we can.  Perhaps you would like us to share the conference learning with you after the event - and we know that there will be fellow SADD members who would be happy to help you in this way!  

My message to you is, that no matter what you are facing, or what you might need - please don't be afraid to reach out and tell us about it.

The energy I personally had bundled up around the earthquake is now being released as I work together with SADD students in the Upper South Island to create positive change.   I have found the return to work and to what I love to do, a true catharsis - a positive step towards my own recovery.  I now look with positivity to the recovery of our great city.  We are Cantabrians, we are Kiwis, and we can do anything!

- Kia Kaha Otautahi (Christchurch) – We hope to see you at SADD Conference 2011 and we look forward to working with you throughout the year!

Gabe's Story

Imagine this ...

It's 1999 and you are a 16 year old guy.  You've got your first car (a Honda City); you've got a girlfriend; you've just enrolled at polytech to undertake a computer course, and you're mad about skateboarding ... and in fact, quite good at it too.  Good enough for a local business to want to sponsor you.

Life's pretty good huh!?

Well then, imagine this ...

You've just spent some time with your family out at the beach.  You have come back into town to drop your girlfriend off at work and to go and visit your grandparents.  That all done, you're making your way home about 3.00pm in the afternoon when your life changes forever.

That's part of Gabe's story, you see Gabe was hit by a drunk driver that afternoon.  He was just 2 minutes from home ... can you imagine?  Just 2 short minutes from home, driving on a residential street and he's hit, head on.  The driver of the other car is not only drunk, but he's traveling at 100 kms per hour in a 50 km zone.  

Gabe can't remember much of the crash or the (what must have been) hair-raising hours following.  But luckily for him, the emergency services arrived to cut him free of his vehicle and carefully bundle his broken body into an awaiting ambulance.  

Can you imagine?

And his day didn't end there.  Gabe was then airlifted from one hospital to another, over 200kms away.  Sat beside him is a trauma specialist who is doing everything possible to help Gabe make it safely to his destination.  

Meanwhile, Gabe's family have heard the news and they are now having to make the trip from the beach to the hospital, over 3 hours drive away ... all the time wondering if he'll be okay when they get there.

Gabe has a fractured hip, leg, pelvis and elbow, along with liver damage, bruised lungs and a severe concussion ... and that's just the beginning of the story!

Gabe's story is one of survival ... a long road of recovery and of discovery - of finding out how to now live when things (when he) will never be the same.  

We are so proud to be offering our conference delegates the chance to meet Gabe at this year's SADD Conference Season, and to hear first-hand his amazing story.  We are immensely grateful to Gabe for being brave and generous enough to share his experiences, so that we may learn.

We know Gabe's story will further inspire the hundreds of students who dedicate their time each year to running the SADD programme in their schools and communities. 

Plus - there's a twist to Gabe's story that you won't believe! 

To find out more about our 2011 Conference season - download this registration pack

Repeat offender could be your granny ...

It's conference season time, so late nights at the desk are a given at the moment.  I decided to take my tea-break last night in time to watch Police Ten 7 (NZ programming) and Highway Patrol (Australian programming), which screen back to back on a Thursday night on TV2. 

I'm not a total reality TV nut, but rather both programmes had advertised drink-driving segments - so I thought I would watch to see if there was anything in the episodes that might be useful for our members. I was flawed.  Both episodes involved drunk, female drivers - one in her late forties (I'm guessing) and the other was a grandmother, aged 70!

Now let's deal with the first offender (she was on the NZ programme) who explained why she was driving intoxicated to the arresting officers - it appears she caught her boyfriend in bed with another woman.  Now while I feel very sorry for her and that must have been traumatic, I'm still sitting there wondering why she couldn't call a taxi or a friend?  I would struggle to drive as upset as she was, let alone drunk too?!  My small thread of empathy for her snaps however, when you later discover that she has been caught SIX times before ... in fact she's on bail for the last time she was caught and is therefore remanded in custody to appear in court the following morning.  (The judge passed a sentence that included a year in prison)

The second offender - the granny - did an amazing song and dance routine for the officer who pulled her over ... it was almost comedic and worthy of road-side acting oscars, if such a thing existed.  Apparently she knew she was speeding and she was very naughty and sorry ... when questioned if she had been drinking (and we can see she's definitely drunk from our living rooms) she first responds 'no', then later says 'not since lunch'.   The granny, her name is Margaret, repeatedly fails to complete the road-side breath alcohol assessment, by pretending to not understand that she has to blow until the officer says 'stop' ... it's painful to watch after about the 7th attempt.  So the officer bundles Margaret into the police vehicle and off they go to the station ...

At the station Margaret completes the breath test - hallelujah!   She blows TWICE the legal limit and sits there scratching her head about how that could of happened.  She's also, we now discover, a disqualified driver for ... drum roll .... drink driving convictions!   Margaret talks to camera about having been caught  before (four times the officer tells us) and how silly she is ... 'don't do it, you're a fool if you do' she helpfully says to the audience.

I just wanted to jump into the television and shake her ... how incredibly selfish or stupid could a person get?  Both repeat offenders are lucky - yes, I said lucky!  They are lucky because they were caught by police officers in roadside tests and not by emergency services being called to a crash scene, where they have slammed into a tree, or worse, a car-load of innocent road users!

Now, I know I'm on my soap-box here, but seriously - recidivist drink drivers (repeat offenders) are the most dangerous drivers on our roads.  Statistically we know that for every time they are caught, there are numerous other occasions they are out there driving drunk and they almost always, eventually, end up hurting someone.  

I feel entitled to be on my soap-box, because in my line of work I have had the immense privilege of meeting and getting to know many families who have lost a loved one to a drink-driving crash - many of which were caused by a recidivist. It's heart-breaking to have the knowledge that these drivers had been caught 4,6,8, sometimes more than 10 or 20 times - these drivers have no respect for the law, or other road users ... they will drive drunk; they will drive disqualified and drunk ... and will even break existing bail terms to do it. 

Somehow we must get the message through to the blind and senseless!  If you know of anyone who is a repeat offender, and hey, it could be your granny ... make sure you do everything you can to intervene.  You might just save their life and the lives of innocent others.

Mocktail anyone?

Mocktails have become synonymous with SADD in NZ - it's definitely on the lighter side of what we do and something positive and fun students can get involved with.  

It originally stemmed from a campaign (decades ago) around Host Responsibility - which included tips like making sure that there was always non-alcoholic drink options provided at parties and functions ... along with other key ingredients for a safe night, such as hot food supplied; alternative and safe transport on offer for any people who had been drinking and sober parents to supervise the event etc.

Mocktails lived on and continued to appeal to each new batch of SADD students (we're talking over 20 odd years) and so for decades now our school groups and members have been running 'Mocktail Competitions' in school; providing Mocktail refreshment stands at community events, or (still) sharing recipes as part of party planning packs.  So we thought it might be fun to share some of the recipes that our members send in to us!

 

Make it more enjoyable for sober drivers at your parties or functions by having some yummy non-alcoholic drinks on offer!  Try one of our Summer favourites  ...

 

Mojito Mocktail

• 2 tsp brown sugar

• 4 sprigs of mint

• 3 Tbs fresh lime or lemon juice

• 1/2 cup soda

• 2 drops of bitters    

1. Muddle lime or lemon at the bottom of a tall glass.

2. Add brown sugar,soda and bitters.

3. Clap the mint between your hands and stir in.

 

If you have your own mocktail recipe to share, then be sure to send it in to us - our contact details are at www.sadd.co.nz

It all began with a handful of students ...

SADD, like most movements, had very small beginnings ...

IT all begun in 1986, following a spate of crashes, when a small group of students at Mahurangi College in Warkworth, New Zealand, banded together to say enough is enough.  An American exchange student, who was studying at Mahurangi College at the time, introduced the concept of SADD - based on a similar programme which had already begun in the United States

From then and through 1987 pockets of students in various areas around the country began to rise up against drink driving – and being inspired by the Mahurangi College group, they too called it SADD (Students Against Driving Drunk).   

The issue was so important at the time and in the consciousness of our communities, that in 1988 SADD became a national organisation with funding and support from the AA (NZ Automobile Association) to resource and organise student groups across the country. 

As an organisation we’ve continued to grow and develop since our inception and today we have active programmes running in over 63% of all secondary schools with hundreds of student members, thousands of participants and an audience of over 192,000 young people.  These days we are principally funded by the NZTA and the AA has continued to support us in varying ways for over 25 years.

In its earliest days SADD was a simple movement.  It grew, and the conversation became a national one.  Students revolutionised their own culture around drink driving and this had an impact on the whole community.  

Our country has come a long way and achieved much in terms of reducing the harm caused on our roads by drink drivers – but with 138 deaths recorded in 2009 (32% of all fatal crashes) and young drivers still responsible for around 35% of alcohol related fatal crashes – we’re not done yet.

Today, like in 1986, our organisation is made up  of students who care and who want to see change ... that handful of students has grown however, to hundreds of active members who through their work impact on hundreds of thousands of young NZers.

SADD Ambassadors 2010: Hamish, Beka, Victoria, Shawnee and Will

 After 25 years in operation we can look back and know that the first ever SADD students would be of an average age of 42 now ... the average age of today's members is 16 - we have crossed a generation and SADD , sadly (excuse the pun), remains as relevant today as 25 years ago.  

We can never count how many lives have been saved over our 25 years and as the result of the thousands of SADD students who worked hard on this issue - but we can count how many more we must continue to fight for!

We are proud of our legacy and excited about this our 25th year ...

 To find out how you can be part of the legacy and get involved with SADD - see our website for details:   www.sadd.co.nz 

Our Conference Season 2011 - Social Entrepreneurship

Social Entrepreneurs CAN and DO change the world!

SADD's student members, whether they know this or not, are a breed of Social Entrepreneur.  They are industrious, creative and committed in their work to change the attitudes and behaviours around drink-driving.  They educate their peers; heighten the awareness around this serious issue in their own communities and deliver outcomes that, in relation to our important cause, improve the world around them.

Social Entrepreneurship can seem like a lofty subject matter ... it's the kind of term that could scare most young people and have them thinking that it's something outside of their knowledge and experience base.  The reality is that many of the young people we know are already Social Entrepreneurs - they just don't know the 'label' or what it means. 

That is why we are incredibly excited about the theme for this year's SADD conference season:

Social Entrepreneurship - working together to create positive change

Over two, three-day events (North Island and South Island conferences) we will be inducting our student delegates to the world of Social Entrepreneurship.  Unpicking how this relates to our own work and showing them how each of them, in their own right, are already Social Entrepreneurs - with much to offer their community, their school and SADD's important mission!

At conference our student delegates will have the opportunity to learn from experts; workshop with their peers; contribute to the design of a national campaign; network with SADD students from across each Island and, most importantly, have a lot of fun and a really rewarding experience.


Conference details can be found on our website:  http://www.sadd.co.nz


We look forward to providing further information on this year's conference season through this blog and we will continue to add posts each week.

“Be the change you want to see in the world.” Mahatma Gandhi