Unsung Heroes of Highway Safety Honored for Leadership in Fight Against Drunk Driving
30 November 2000
Unsung Heroes of Highway Safety Honored for Leadership in Fight Against Drunk Driving
MADD National President, Kmart Corporation, Wisconsin Legislators and Law
Enforcement, Massachusetts Citizen Activists and Probation Officer,
South Carolina Newspaper, Pennsylvania Liquor Control Chair, and
States of New York, Rhode Island and Texas Receive National Commission Against
Drunk Driving's Top Honors
WASHINGTON, Nov. 30 The National President of MADD,
Kmart Corporation and the State of New York were among the 14 "heroes of
highway safety" honored today by the National Commission Against Drunk
Driving (NCADD) for their leadership in the fight against impaired driving.
The national honors were presented at NCADD's 16th Annual Awards Luncheon
that capped off a two-day Alcohol & Drug Technology Conference and Exposition
that put the spotlight on new and little used high-tech weapons in the war
against drunk and drugged driving.
"This awards tradition gives us the opportunity to honor some of the most
innovative and effective leaders and programs in the nation to combat impaired
driving and underage drinking, " said Robert C. Stempel, Chairman of the Board
of NCADD. "These award winners have chosen different paths to battle this
problem, but all of their roads are connected as role models in their
communities for reducing death and injury on our highways."
The awards luncheon was sponsored by the NCADD in partnership with the
Farmers Insurance Group. The award recipients were:
HUMANITARIAN AWARD: To Millie Webb, National President of Mothers
Against Drunk Driving (MADD). Ms. Webb was recognized for nearly 20 years of
selfless service and contributions to the fight against drunk driving. In
1971, Ms. Webb was severely burned in a crash caused by a .08 BAC intoxicated
driver, resulting in the death of a daughter and nephew. She was pregnant at
the time, and her daughter Kara was born premature and blind as a result of
the crash. Recently, Ms. Webb has been a recognized national leader to
encourage the Congress and the states enact legislation to lower the drunk
driving limit to .08 BAC nationwide.
STATE AWARD: To the State of New York for the most comprehensive state
impaired driving prevention program in the nation. New York State was
recognized as a national leader in the battle against drunk and drugged
driving. In 1998, New York had the second-lowest level of alcohol-related
fatalities in the United States, and their Special Traffic Options Program for
Driving While Intoxicated (STOP-DWI) law has played a key role in this
enormous success. Accepting the award on behalf of Governor George Pataki was
Kenneth Ringler, Executive Deputy Commissioner of the New York Department of
Motor Vehicles.
LEGISLATIVE LEADERSHIP: To Wisconsin State Senate President Pro Tempore
Gary George and Wisconsin State Representative Jeff Stone who authored
landmark legislation enacted this year to target repeat drunk drivers, highly
intoxicated drivers as well as underage drinkers who drive.
LAW ENFORCEMENT: To the Dane County Sheriff's Office in Madison,
Wisconsin, for the "Mobile Eyes" project -- an innovative public-private
collaboration that rewards cell phone callers who report drunk drivers. More
than 230 DWI arrests have been made and alcohol-related crashes involving
younger drivers have decreased. Axel Anderson, Coordinator of the Operating
While Intoxicated Program accepted the award on behalf of the Dane County
Sheriff's Office.
CORPORATE LEADERSHIP: To Kmart Corporation of Troy, Michigan, which has
donated nearly $1.5 million to organizations to address the problem of
impaired driving. Kmart has also funded and distributed an awareness video to
law enforcement officers, hosted an awareness summit and helped establish the
Ashley Marie Easterbrook Foundation. Ms. Shawn Kahle, Vice President for
Corporate Affairs, accepted the award on behalf of Kmart.
CITIZEN ACTIVIST: To Virginia and George Lester of Westwood,
Massachusetts, members of Remove Intoxicated Drivers (RID) who have worked
tirelessly to change public attitudes and behavior about drinking and driving
since their son Albert was killed by a teenage drunk driver at age 31.
ADJUDICATION LEADERSHIP: To Dennis Visconti, a probation officer for the
Somerville, Massachusetts District Court whose efforts have resulted in an
800% reduction in drunk driving recidivism in the Somerville District Court.
He has utilized the Massachusetts Brain Injury Association's "Brains At Risk"
program with DWI offenders to discourage repeat offenses.
EDUCATION AND PREVENTION: To Amica Insurance and the Rhode Island
Department of Transportation for creating an effective prevention/education
program resulting in the Rhode Island State legislature lowering the drunk
driving limit from .10 Blood-Alcohol Concentration to .08 BAC while increasing
the public awareness of the dangers of impaired driving. Thomas Taylor of
Amica Insurance and Ed Walsh of the Rhode Island Department of Transportation
accepted the award.
MEDIA AWARENESS: To "The State" newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina,
for exceptional news and editorial coverage of drunk driving issues. Cindi
Ross Scoppe, Associate Editor of "The State" authored numerous editorials
calling for passage of tougher anti-drunk driving laws in South Carolina.
Ms. Scoppe's editorials helped motivate the South Carolina legislature to
enact the recent Omnibus Highway Safety Act and Illegal Per Se legislation.
YOUTH INITIATIVE: To the Texas Department of Transportation is being
recognized for their development of a creative outdoor and print advertising
campaign entitled "Photos In About An Hour" which alerted spring break
revelers to the consequences of drinking and driving. Karen Gibson accepted
the award on behalf of the Texas DOT.
GOVERNMENT LEADERSHIP: To John Jones III, Chairman of the Pennsylvania
Liquor Control Board, who has worked to position the Board as a national
leader in alcohol education and prevention. They have pioneered "smart card"
technology to filter out persons under the 21 minimum drinking age who attempt
to purchase alcohol, increased free server training, and piloted a project for
the state's sports and entertainment venues.
"Each of these award winners is truly a lifesaver," said John V. Moulden,
President of the National Commission Against Drunk Driving (NCADD). "These
highway safety heroes are perfect examples of what it is going to take in
every community if we are to win the war on drunk driving. I hope that our
award winners will inspire others to get involved in this fight for our lives
-- starting this holiday season and throughout the year."
December is National Drunk and Drugged Driving Prevention Month. The
NCADD is urging all motorists to participate in "Lights on for Life Day" on
Friday, December 15, by driving with their headlights on in support of sober
driving and in memory of the thousands of victims of drunk driving. Last year
alone, nearly 16,000 people were killed and 700,000 others were injured in
alcohol-related crashes in the United States, according to the U.S. Department
of Transportation.
The NCADD sponsored the awards luncheon in partnership with Farmers
Insurance Group, a company that exemplifies leadership and long-term
commitment to anti-drunk driving efforts.
Prior to the luncheon, the NCADD held the first Alcohol & Drug Technology
Conference and Exposition that put the spotlight on new and little used
high-tech weapons in the war against drunk and drugged driving. This two-day
conference focused on state-of-the-art technologies to detect, test, arrest,
and monitor impaired drivers, and to prevent underage drinking. The NCADD
sponsored the high-tech conference in partnership with the National Highway
Traffic Safety Administration and the Century Council.
For more information about the NCADD and the fight against drunk driving,
visit their web site at http://www.ncadd.com