Impaired driving has brought unspeakable tragedy to our community

Impaired driving has again brought unspeakable tragedy to our community.  Our hearts are broken for the parents, sibling, other family and friends of Connor Dunn.  Indeed, our entire community grieves this outrageous tragedy.  Impaired driving is an epidemic that is again on the rise in our community as reported by local police agencies, leaving a trail of broken lives affecting us all.  This madness must end.  As a student activist, I participated in my first anti-impaired driving conference in 1985, hosted by then Ontario Attorney General Roy McMurtry.  There was real hope that the social movement against impaired driving would finally extinguish this scourge on society, and incidents did begin to fall although not as much as they should have.

Indeed, funding my way through law school as a firefighter, many of the motor vehicle accidents we responded to involved alcohol.  Those tragedies remain with me, my former colleagues and all those lives more immediately devastated.  Still, the numbers of incidents were down and there was hope.

However, here we are on the 40th anniversary of that 1985 conference and yet this evil is not only still with us but increasing.  This is utterly unacceptable.  Each of us is impacted by this, often directly.  We lost a dear friend to impaired driving and the toll of damage that his death left behind for his wife, children and community is incalculable.  He wasn’t the only close loss.  Enough is enough.  We all have a responsibility to step up and defeat this menace.  Our streets must be safe spaces for cyclists, pedestrians, drivers, and passengers.  We can and must prevent impaired driving.  Don't be afraid to take keys from friends or family who are impaired; you could well be saving lives, including the driver’s.  If you're going out for a social evening involving alcohol or other drugs, use a designated driver or ride service; leave your keys at home.  If you're out and have consumed drugs or alcohol, leave your vehicle where it is and use a ride service or call a friend.  

There are many other ways we can work together to confront and defeat this epidemic.  A good start is MADD Canada, or Mothers Against Drunk Driving.  Visit their website for further information and ways to get involved.

Go to MADD Canada, Please, let us all work together and unite in the memory of Connor as well as the countless other lives so unnecessarily destroyed, and let's defeat impaired driving. - Jeff Broadbent

Support is available as we grieve together. 

CMHA Sault Ste. Marie – (705) 759-5989  

Crisis Line – (705) 759-3398 or 1-800-721-0077   

Sault Area Hospital ED – 24-hour Crisis Line: (705) 759-3398 Toll-Free: 1-800-721-0077  

Algoma Family Services – (705)-945-5050