Safe driving saves lifes

Safe driving is very important and is also a topic I am very passionate about: My father was killed by a drunk driver when I just turned 16 years old. The irony of this is that he was huge on safe driving, and always made sure he wasn't breaking the traffic laws or violating them while he was behind the wheel. I know first-hand that safe driving can save lives and I enjoy spreading the word and educating people on this topic because I would love to be able to save even one life or prevent one accident, so someone doesn't have to be heartbroken like myself. I also had a close family friend who was riding a motorcycle and a teenage driver hit him in an SUV and then ran him over again by accident. Needless to say he was in the ICU and lost his leg from the Knee down. Since having his leg amputated, he has faced many challenges: Chronic pain, numerous ongoing doctor appointments, not being able to get the correct fitting for a prosthetic, depression, and judgement by people he cares about. This was a devastating event that happened, and it was all behind the young driver talking and texting on her phone that she was speeding and ignoring stop signs. I believe the best way to get the message of the importance of safe driving is by word of mouth and educating people of all ages. Knowledge is power. Especially someone who hasn’t experienced an accident happening to them or a loved one can underestimate the importance or driving safely. It’s a lot of responsibility to drive especially because your not only responsible for your own safety but other people who are driving on the road as well. Speaking to huge groups of teenagers or one individual in the grocery store can make a difference. To honor my father, I am seeking my degree as he wished for me, and I am also making sure to drive safely every time I get behind the wheel. I know first-hand it only takes one time to risk or lose a life. To make sure I can drive safely I always try to leave a few minutes earlier than necessary to get to my destination: This avoids the temptation to speed or be distracted while behind the wheel. I also keep my cell phone in my purse with the ringer off while I am in the car. That way, I am not tempted to look at the phone. I do not even glance down at my phone to see who is calling because that was always my weakness! I understand while driving it only takes a couple seconds of “glancing at my phone” to get into big trouble and sometimes trouble that cannot be undone or trouble I cannot pray my way out of. When I ran across this essay topic for this scholarship, I literally became excited. I became excited not only to write the paper but because I saw the essays are going to be all posted online and I know that many people are going to see this topic and give it some or a lot of thought. Like I said earlier, knowledge is power. I really believe that safe driving should be taught in middle and high schools and probably colleges as well: It sometimes seems that adults need to be taught safety knowledge just as much if not more than kids sometimes. I think if we all continue to spread the word about safe safe driving and what can happen if we do not stay safe behind the wheel then we could save a lot of lives and money as well actually: Everyone would pay less for insurance because they would not be accumulating those extra expensive driving points on their record. This is such a wonderful and important topic. I cannot wait to go onto the dmv website and read what other students wrote and to see their thoughts and views about driving. I hope we reach a huge crowd of people and if we reach a small crowd, I just hope it all makes a difference and we save lives in the process. I would suggest that before anyone starts their vehicles, they put their phones on silently and do not touch the again until the car is off. It might sound a little drastic but remember we are trying to save lives by implementing these safe driving practices.