Walk Like MADD 2011 Recap

Greetings!

On Sat. Sept. 24th, the sun never shone in Long Beach but Whitney’s All Stars Team was shining brightly! Steve and I wanted to take this opportunity to send a special thank you to each of you who “participated” in the “Walk Like MADD” event. As you can see from the collage, we were well represented. We definitely had the largest team and really a lot of young people, which was our main goal.

Thanks to the 95 walkers including one toddler in a stroller, 4 young girls on scooters and 7 dogs!
Thanks to the 30 who supported our efforts as virtual walkers!
Thanks to all who supported MADD’s education and outreach efforts with donations totaling $6250.
Thanks to those who donated $1511 to the Whitney Young Children’s Foundation in honor of MADD.
Thanks to Pam Lopez who donated “Whitney’s Fine Chocolates” to all the walkers and has been selling them at Keesal, Young and Logan and donating all profits to the WYCF.
Thanks to Tina Quinn, Jacquie Leimbach, Julie Pond, Robyn Peacock, Kim Rutledge, Julie Long, Hilary Waxler, and Julianne Sasso who organized Ticktockers, Los Hermanos and Los Compadres and brought out the young people in great numbers once again.

As you know, the purpose of the walk was to raise awareness about the dangers of drinking and driving. We were glad to have so many teenagers walking with us and we were very impressed with them. Steve and I spoke to them and relayed the horrors of drunk driving—not just for the victim, but for the victim’s family and for the individual who chooses to drive drunk. This year, the Long Beach Police Chief added his comments and pointed out that drugs and driving or texting and driving lead to the same terrible results. We hope this conversation was meaningful for young and old alike. It truly is all about making responsible decisions and these deaths truly are avoidable. If we can spare even one family the horror or grief we have experienced, then it will be worth all our efforts!

MADD works to:

• Increase sobriety checkpoints
• Make convicted drunk drivers “blow before they go” by passing laws which make ignition interlocks –-or in-car breathalyzers—mandatory for all convicted drunk drivers
• Turn cars into the cure by developing technology that will stop cars from operating if a driver is above the legal alcohol limit

In the last year, drunk driving crashes killed nearly 11,000 people and injured almost another 400,000. In CA, an average of 28 men, women and children are killed each day due to impaired driving crashes and hundreds more are seriously injured. Sadly, all of these deaths were preventable.

Thank you. You will never know how much your support means to us.

Love,

Marlene and Steve Young