The N.C. Governor’s Highway Safety Program kicked off its Labor Day 2008 “Booze It & Lose It” campaign this week with two public announcements across the state, including one at Elon University, where police reminded drivers that officers do not tolerate drinking and driving.
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Dozens of police officers representing nearly as many agencies attended the Aug. 15 announcement in the parking lot of the East Gym. The event included brief remarks by Smith Jackson, vice president and dean of student life at Elon, and Stacy Koon, an Elon alumna who lost her mother to a drunk driver in 2006.
“There’s nothing more important than people getting in here and getting busted,” Koon said, her two children at her side. “Please keep doing what you do. I know it seems like a losing battle sometimes, but it’s not.”
Darrell Jernigan, director of the Governor’s Highway Safety Program, also addressed the crowd.
“This time of year marks the end of the summer and is traditionally known as the beginning of football season, so what better place to mark this occasion than on a college campus,” Jernigan said. “We take considerable pride in out ‘Booze It & Lose It’ campaign, which has removed tens of thousands of impaired drivers from our roadways over the past 14 years.”
In 2007, he said, 488 people died in a total of 11,497 alcohol-related crashes in North Carolina. And on Aug. 8, 2008, the highway safety program conducted a one-night enforcement blitz that led to 454 DWI arrests and 770 criminal violations.
Jackson promoted several efforts at Elon to educate students about the risks and responsibilities inherent with drinking alcohol. He highlighted the Safe Rides program, which provides students rides to within one mile of campus on Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights, along with the SPARKS Peer Education program.
“Our greatest concern at Elon University is the health and safety of our students,” Jackson said. “On behalf of the university, I want to thank you for your commitment to making it a safe community for all of us.”