My daughter Casey’s favorite color was pink. She was killed by a distracted driver and I wear a pink wristband to remember and honor her. I also wear wristbands to remember other children killed by distracted driving. For three years I have traveled across the country speaking to teens and adults, at schools, work places, community events and conferences. I meet other parents whose children are dead because of distracted driving and they give me wristbands to remember their children. On my right wrist are those for the girls-lavender for Katie, Green for Toni and R.J., purple for Heather, orange for Chloe and green for Blaine. On my left the boys – lime-green for Conor, blue and white for Paul, gray for Reece, black for Connor and orange for Owen. Grieving parents, living while our children are dead, struggling to make sense of something that defies explanation, wearing wristbands in our children’s favorite colors; that’s what many of us do after our children are killed.
But parents can do something before their children are killed. Studies continue to demonstrate that children are influenced by their parents. Children really do listen to what we say. But they also watch us. The vast majority of students who I speak with tell me that their moms and dads regularly drive distracted with them as passengers. We can keep our children safe by not just telling them to drive distraction-free but by also driving distraction-free ourselves.
Be the driver you want your child to be is sound advice.
Watch our 30 second PSA:
Joel Feldman
Joel Feldman is the father of the late Casey Feldman and founder of the Casey Feldman Foundation and its sponsored project, EndDD.org. He has been a practicing attorney for 34 years and a shareholder in the law firm of Anapol Weiss in Philadelphia. He received a masters in counseling in 2013 and speaks throughout the U.S. and Canada to teens and adults, changing attitudes and behaviors through the science based, End Distracted Driving program. Joel also provides death notification training to law enforcement and the medical community. Joel can be reached at [email protected]
