Benton Harbor auto dealer Bill Crowder cares deeply about the young people of Michigan’s Great Southwest. The General Manager of the Signature Automotive Group on E. Napier Avenue in Benton Harbor has been a member of the Bridgman Foundation for Educational Excellence for a number of years, has actively played a role in other fundraising efforts for schools throughout the area, and even opens his dealership showroom up to host the Mid-West Family Broadcasting Academic Challenge every week during the school year. Now, however, he’s taking his advocacy for teens to a whole new level.
Crowder is reaching out to school administrators across the region in a personal effort to showcase the deep and abiding concern he has for distracted teen driving in our area. He has dispatched a letter to local administrators seeking their involvement and encouragement in an event next month to graphically show students the very real impact of distracted driving.
Pointing out the huge spike in traffic fatalities last year, the never-ending use of drivers using cell phones to talk and text behind the wheel and more, Crowder wants to maximize an effort he is undertaking to bring a reality simulator vehicle to his dealership on Saturday, March 11th, to show students how dangerous their activities are behind the wheel.
Here’s Crowder’s letter to the local school systems:
Dear School Administrators:
Because of a deep personal belief and concern that I have for distracted teen driving on today’s roads, I am contacting you today to ask for help. Too many of our youth are affected in our area and around the country, and I personally would like to prevent an accident before it occurs in our area. The statistics are staggering and are even higher for youth.:
- Last year, traffic fatalities increased by 7.2 percent—the biggest annual increase in nearly 50 years
- By the end of the day, Americans will have sent more than 6 billion text messages
- Drivers using cell phones fail to see up to 50 percent of the information in their driving environment
- Drivers using their cell phones have a slower reaction time than drivers with a .08 percent blood alcohol content
I am taking an active role in prevention of this type of tragedy and here is what I need from you. We have hired a company to setup an actual reality simulation on a real car to show our youth how quickly a “real life” experience can cause accidents. Our goal is to impact 250 students within the area, and with the help of social media, we intend to impact or touch many more students. This experience is one that our youth will remember and share with others. My hopes are that by sharing the reality simulation with them, we can saves lives together. I ask that you share the attached flyer with all students that are of driving age and any group within your district that supports safety, lifestyles, or student responsibility.
We are holding the event on Saturday, March 11th from 9am – 3pm. Please provide me with a rough count, if possible, so that we may plan and coordinate the event. If you don’t have the ability to estimate the number of students you expect to join us, that’s fine, but please contact me so I know if your school will be participating. I would like to thank you in advance, because together, I believe that we can save the lives of students within our communities.
Crowder’s dealership will host the TeenDrive365 Oculus Rift Simulator from Toyota on that Saturday in March in hopes that fewer teens will allow distractions when they are behind the wheel. Here’s a brief video on what the program is all about:
