MADD Announces New Board Members
By
MADD
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June 21, 2012
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Filed in:
General
We are thrilled to announce five new members to our National Board of Directors! This diverse group of new members brings a range of experience, including grassroots activism, underage drinking prevention, financial expertise and much more.
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Steven Benvenisti, New Jersey. During Steven's senior year of college, he was walking while on spring break when he was struck by a habitual drunk driver. His legs were crushed and he was in a coma for 10 days. He spent six months in the hospital, enduring 15 surgeries and intense rehabilitation. After that crash, he turned to MADD and found victim advocates in Florida and New Jersey who helped him and his family deal with the challenges from the crash. He fully recovered, went on to law school, and now is a partner at the law firm of Davis, Saperstein & Salomon, where he represents victims of drunk driving and their families in lawsuits against the drunk drivers and those who served them. He has served on the New Jersey Advisory Board for MADD for several years, and shares his story to audiences around the country.
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Brad Bulla, Tennessee. At the age of 17, Brad’s son, Jed, was a champion fiddle player and had been playing since he was six years old. In August 2005, Jed was practicing to compete at the Grand Master Fiddle Contest, but his life was cut short when he took a ride with an underage drunk driver. The pickup got up above 100 MPH before the driver lost control. Jed was thrown from the truck to the side of the road, where he died. Brad starting working with MADD shortly after the crash. He has been a frequent speaker on victim impact panels, including at the national 2009 Lifesavers Conference, and a force for stronger drunk driving laws in his home state of Tennessee.
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Frank Magourilos, New Mexico. Frank is a Senior Prevention Specialist for the Santa Fe County DWI Program. In this role, he has worked closely with MADD New Mexico, the New Mexico Traffic Safety Bureau, and the New Mexico Prevention Network. He has tirelessly supported and implemented MADD’s Power of Parents™ underage drinking prevention program throughout the state of New Mexico and is a large part of the success the Power of Parents program has had in the state. He is also one of just a handful of individuals in the country with a Master’s Degree in Prevention Science from the University of Oklahoma. Additionally, Frank is a National Trainer and Consultant with the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA).
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Mahesh Shetty, Texas. Mahesh is Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer of Encore Enterprises, Inc., a Dallas-based real estate investment company. He has more than 25 years of experience as a senior finance executive and started his career at PriceWaterhouseCoopers. Dallas Business Journal named him their 2011 CFO of the Year for companies with $50-99 million in revenue. He is also a vice chair of the Committee on Finance and IT at Financial Executives International, the leading U.S. association for CFOs and other senior finance executives
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Monica Vandehei, Connecticut. In high school, Monica not only excelled in her studies, but also completed more than 350 hours of community service — most of which was with MADD Connecticut. She has earned the Girl Scout Gold Award, the highest honor the organization has to give, and in addition to MADD and Girl Scouts, has volunteered with the United States Coast Guard Academy’s Ensign Edibles Program and the Shoreline Soup Kitchen. She credits her values, her peer group and her parents with helping her refrain from underage drinking. Monica just finished her first year at Belmont University in Nashville, Tenn., studying Music Business.
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Meet MADD Tennessee’s Program Specialist, Phaedra Marriott-Olson
By
MADD
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June 19, 2012
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Filed in:
Drunk Driving
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Underage Drinking
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Victim Services
The Knoxville News Sentinel recently featured an article about Phaedra Marriott-Olson, MADD Tennessee Program Specialist and drunk driving crash survivor.
In May of 1996, the car Phaedra was driving was hit head on when a driver with a .08 BAC crossed the centerline into oncoming traffic. Phaedra spent five and a half weeks on life support after the crash that left her paralyzed. At the time, the legal limit to drive in Missouri was .10, so the driver was not charged with a DUI.
Phaedra did not waste any time turning her tragedy into a positive message. Even from her hospital bed she worked to put an end to drunk driving by allowing students to visit her hospital room to see first-hand the effects of drinking and driving.
Today, 21 surgeries later, Phaedra works full time for MADD Tennessee working with youth, giving parents the tools to talk to their teens about the dangers of underage drinking, and teaching death notification to law enforcement officers.
Jan Withers says it best: “Phaedra is an inspiration to me and many others who have been victimized by impaired driving. She has turned her trauma into reaching out and helping others.”
Read the full article from The Knoxville News Sentinel.
2012 Lifesavers National Conference
By
Jan Withers
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June 14, 2012
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Filed in:
Drunk Driving
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National President
Earlier today I gave the keynote address at the 30th Anniversary Lifesavers Conference on Highway Safety Priorities in Orlando. The Lifesavers conference is the largest gathering of highway safety professional in the U.S., so it was a great opportunity to share my story and talk about how we need to renew the focus of proven traffic safety solutions, including MADD’s Campaign to Eliminate Drunk Driving.
I also used this opportunity to announce that MADD plans to reach out to many of the traffic safety groups to formulate the traffic safety summit. We’ve seen some states make great progress, but others have been backsliding, so we must take a comprehensive approach and focus on the countermeasures that will help use our safety resources in the most cost-beneficial way.
Read the transcripts of my speech or the press release online now.
MADD Calls on New York Assembly to Advance DWI Reform
By
MADD
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June 12, 2012
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Filed in:
Drunk Driving
MADD and the father behind Leandra’s Law, Lenny Rosado, are calling on the New York State Assembly to advance S 6636/A 9544, sponsored by Senator Charles Fuschillo and Assemblyman Harvey Weisenberg. Passage of this important legislation would improve Leandra’s Law by increasing ignition interlock compliance rates.
Leandra’s Law was signed in 2009, making driving drunk with a child passenger a felony, and requiring ignition interlocks for all convicted drunk drivers. However, due to loopholes in the state’s current drunk driving law, only one third of DWI offenders in New York have had an interlock installed since August 2010.
Throughout the U.S., 16 states (including New York) require ignition interlocks for all convicted drunk drivers. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, ignition interlocks save lives and reduce drunk driving repeat offenses by 67 percent.
New York residents: Contact your lawmakers today in support of strengthening Leandra’s Law.
For more information on MADD’s Campaign to Eliminate Drunk Driving®, which includes requiring ignition interlocks for all convicted drunk drivers, visit www.madd.org/campaign.
*UPDATED 6/13/2012*
Yesterday, the Assembly Transportation Committee failed to advance S 6636/A 9544, despite strong support from the full Assembly.
MADD implores New York Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver to advance pending legislation to strengthen Leandra’s Law and save lives. The Speaker’s action is especially critical for victims like Lenny Rosado and for the citizens of New York who deserve to be protected from repeat drunk driving offenders.
If you live in New York, please contact your lawmakers now. It's quick and easy, and you can help save lives in New York.
I’m a Mom for DADSS
By
Jan Withers
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June 8, 2012
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Filed in:
Drunk Driving
Yesterday, I had the pleasure of visiting the lab where they are researching the end of drunk driving. And once again, I became a mom for DADSS.
Driver Alcohol Detection System for Safety, DADSS for short, is our hope for the future to ELIMINATE drunk driving. Two prototypes of advanced technology are being studied. One is touched-based and one is breath-based.
While more research needs to be done, both technologies are working toward the goal of accurately and precisely detecting how much alcohol is in the driver’s system. In all 50 states, a legally drunk driver—someone with a .08 BAC or higher—would not be able to operate the vehicle if this technology comes to fruition.
This is exciting, but more importantly, it is happening. DADSS has surpassed expectations and has entered into phase two of research. We will see this in our lifetime and I got to see it with my own eyes.
Unfortunately, current funding for this research program will end in 2013, but I have worked with our public policy team in Washington to include funding for DADSS in the new Senate transportation bill. We now look to the House Transportation & Infrastructure Committee to also support the funding as the bill moves forward. If the House does not act, the future of DADSS will be unclear. To me, that means thousands of people will die at the hands of drunk drivers before Congress sees fit to protect us by funding this research again.
Congressman Mica is Chairman of this committee. Please click here and ask your member of congress to tell Chairman Mica to agree with the Senate and fund DADSS research in the next highway bill.
DADSS has the potential to eliminate drunk driving in America. We must do everything we can to ensure this project receives funding for phase three.
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| MADD's Board of Directors and Senior Leadership touring the DADSS research facility. |
