Sayville SADD Shares Reminders For Event-filled Month of June

June Should be a Month of Happy Celebrations

And Sayville SADD Wants to Keep It That Way

June 2021

In anticipation of prom season and graduation celebrations, Sayville’s Students Against Drunk Driving (SADD) welcomed an apropos program sponsored by the Suffolk County Police Department to warn about the dangers of impaired driving. 

On two select days in June, Sayville High School students met outreach members of the SCPD in their gym classes. The officers were introduced each gym period by either SADD President Erin Henn or Vice President Aidan McCullough. Officer Richard Park from the Highway Patrol Bureau spoke from experience about the traffic accidents and fatalities he has seen on the job. He reminded the students that driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol is not only illegal, but also risks the lives of those impaired as well as other drivers and innocent pedestrians. In addition to Officer Park’s presentation, Officer Tom DiLena from the Community Relations Bureau brought the Traffic Simulator for the students to test their driving skills. Students took turns sitting “behind the wheel” in the simulator seat and “driving” through ordinary streets. The simulator was a hands-on and “eye-opening” education, showing how a driver who is impaired has slowed response times when the unexpected happens.

SADD Advisor Margie Dashiell thanked “Sergeant Michael Baranek of the Highway Patrol Bureau as he was very instrumental in helping organize” the interactive SCPD presentations.

The Sayville SADD club also arranged for the “DWI Crash Car” that is annually positioned on the Sayville High School's front lawn for all to see. Mrs. Dashiell remarked, it is “a reminder of the dangers of drinking and driving for our students, especially our seniors.” The smashed and twisted vehicle, donated by Gershow Recycling—thanks to the efforts of Jonathan Abrams of Gershow—will remain a graphic visual for the duration of June.