Teen memorial dance aimed at ending tragedy

Spectrum

by Amy Menerey

My daughter, Julie Anne Menerey, died on Dec. 26, 2001, as the result of a car crash. She was 16 years old and the driver of the car. Julie and her passenger were buckled, they were not drinking or doing drugs; but she did drive too fast, causing her to lose control of the car on icy roads and slide into an oncoming car.

She was in a coma for 11 days before her heart gave out.

Since Julie's death I have been speaking to teens about the dangers of reckless driving. I talked with students at Wasilla High School about my experience, its cause and about the statistics that show car crashes are the leading causes of death among teens, and more teens are involved in crashes than any other age group. I am in the process of forming a nonprofit, Teens Drive Safe, to spread that message.

On April 4, together with the Mat-Su Peer Helpers and Wasilla High School, we held the first Julie Menerey Memorial Teen Dance at the National Guard Armory. The purpose was two-fold: to honor Julie's memory -- that of a young, vibrant girl who was full of life, loved music and singing, and loved to be with her friends, and to educate teens about safe driving.

Although the turnout was not as good as I had hoped, the teens that did come had a great time and many spent more than a few minutes looking at and reading the information about Julie and about teen driving that was displayed at the entrance of the dance.

To that end, it was a success. If any one of those teens thinks twice about driving carelessly I have accomplished my goal -- to prevent another teen driving tragedy.

I would like to thank everyone who helped with the dance: Jim Holen, Linda Ransom and Debbie Haynes of Mat-Su Peer Helpers; all the girls from Wasilla High's Peer Helpers who did a tremendous job organizing, putting up posters and fliers and volunteering their time; John Klapperich and KMBQ for getting the word out; the Frontiersman and my co-workers who chaperoned; Kathleen Krug and the volunteer EMTs who not only chaperoned but joined in the dancing; Trooper Troy Shuey who was on hand with his Fatal Vision Glasses (drunk goggles) to talk to teens about the dangers of drunk driving; all of my friends and family and Julie's friends who attended or volunteered; and to Wasilla High School for supporting my efforts and for their generous donation to the cause.

As a parent, I am still learning to cope with the idea of Julie being gone. The pain is there every day, and unfortunately I share that pain with too many other parents. Parents, please make sure your teens have had plenty of instruction before letting them behind the wheel alone.

Teach them about defensive driving, talk to them about reckless driving, and limit the time periods they are allowed to drive, the conditions under which they can drive and how many passengers they can have in the car. Statistics show that inexperience, speed and distractions are the leading cause of teen accidents, injury and death.

Amy Menerey is a Wasilla resident and a Frontiersman employee.