Author:
Someone said I should write something about myself. I am your neighbor, the hand you shake on Sunday mornings at church, the cashier at the grocery store, your child’s teacher, or even your co-worker. I have hope and faith in god and mankind and on the wall in my home it is written "Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things and endures all things. Even when faith has yielded to sight and hope to possession. Love never fails". I am a simple person with a little courage and a lot of strength in my soul. I am a mother first and foremost and I perform well when told it can't be done or never. I have respect for others and hope others have respect for me. I wish no one to feel sorry for me but to just try and understand my drive to complete the task of getting this message to those that so desperately need to be awakened.
Dedicated:
This book is dedicated to my son and his messages. But these messages are from the innocent, people that have been left behind. Everyday people out there that in an instant their lives have been changed forever because of a tragedy. Not just to the family and friends of drunk drivers but to the families and friends of loved ones taken from them because of a drunk driver.
Hope:
I believe that every time this book is read it strengthens the hope for a better choice. That was my intention when writing the book. There were only 200 copies of the book made. At the time it was what I could afford. Many of my friends and family supported my cause and donated ten dollars for their copy, which I am very grateful for. I realized after the book was done and the response to it, I couldn't stop there I had to get this message out. My son would have wanted that.
With this book now accessible online and at no cost, it now can be printed and mailed to a friend or loved one. The webpage can be emailed or sent by a message through Facebook or Twitter to anyone in the world. It don't cost anything. The webpage can be used as a reminder for kids graduating from school, for the holidays, and even just for a night out of fun. It could also be used in driving classes and other community groups. I have faith the message being sent out will help promote a better choice.
Book:
I still have a hard time reading the book. It does bring back a lot of emotions that I faced after losing Larry. I often wonder if I would have had the opportunity to read a book such as this before Larry lost his life, could I have made a difference in his out come. I can only say I sure would have tried and he would have been given a copy of the book or the webpage.
The book’s pictures meant everything to me. I wanted to welcome you into our family and give you an idea of how Larry grew as a person. It was important that you knew how much his family loved him and he loved us. I wanted you to feel he was real, someone you got to know through reading the book.
The pictures in the book are of Larry, his older sister Kyersten, his younger sister Brin'ette, his dad Larry Sr., his brother-in-law Chad married to Kyersten, and their oldest daughter Lyndsey, Larry’s niece, the grave site where Larry's remains are buried which is across a little country road from his dads home, and myself.
Did You Know:
Everyday, almost 30 people in the United States die in motor vehicle crashes that involve an alcohol-impaired driver. This amounts to one death every 48 minutes.
In 2010, 10,228 people were killed in alcohol-impaired driving crashes, accounting for nearly one-third (31%) of all traffic-related deaths in the United States. http://www.cdc.gov/motorvehiclesafety/impaired_driving/impaired-drv_factsheet.html
About one-third of all drivers arrested or convicted of driving while intoxicated or driving under the influence of alcohol are repeat offenders. http://www.madd.org/statistics/
Thank You for taking the time to read the book. You just helped strengthen hope for a better choice. Please share with others.