“Thanks to you and Matt I now try to get things done early in the day so that I can get enough sleep. I also share you all’s information with my friends outside of school to prevent more accidents caused by drowsy driving. Your story is a beautiful one and definitely something I have learned from.”
“Thank you for coming in and teaching my class about sleep deprivation. I’ve now been trying to get 8-10 hours of sleep every night. You’ve greatly impacted my life and reasons of why I need to sleep. Thank you.”
“I am proud to say that through your story I try to make sure my mom does not push herself to drive when she drives as well.”
“A few years ago I lost my mom due to a car accident and I could never imagine presenting about it in front of people. I’m so sorry for your loss. I don’t know why bad things happen to good people but I believe God has a plan for everything. Your presentation made a big impact on my life and it makes me want to inform others.”
“Thanks for coming to our class and telling us the story of Tyler. I’ve also lost family due to drowsy driving. My big brother died asleep in the passenger seat while his girlfriend fell asleep behind the wheel. So I also feel your pain and understand why you would go school to school telling his story. Sorry for your loss. Just keep it going, your presentation sure stuck in my head.”
“Thank you for teaching us the dangers of drowsy driving. Over the weekend I was about to drive really early in the morning, but I remembered what you said and decided not to drive. Thanks again and keep teaching, your son can make a big impact on kids everywhere.”
“You influence me a great deal. As soon as I made it home I made everyone in my household go to sleep on time, definitely my mom. So thank you for sharing your story. It takes a lot of heart to tell a story like that but it touched me and now I go to sleep at the right time. It takes a lot to scare me but your presentation scared me. I didn’t know your body would shut down after so many hours of staying up. I didn’t know that being sleepy is equivalent to being drunk. You scared me into telling all my close friends and relatives not to drive sleepy, and I thank you.”
“I loved how you put in perspective that this could actually happen to an everyday teen and how often it happens. You touched me when you were talking about siblings and that he will never see them again. If this ever happened to my only sister I would go insane. I am thankful that there are people like you in the world.”
“I want to give you a million thanks for taking time out of your day to give us such an eye opening presentation. Just the night before I was having a talk with my mother about safe driving and when you showed up I felt like I was given a second chance. I’ve put Tyler’s bumper sticker on the back of my car. I always keep him in mind anytime I drive and I feel even the little bit of tiredness. In the back of my mind I constantly stay awake for Tyler! Get to your destination safely. Thanks again.”
“Because of you and your courage to come in and talk about this topic of drowsy driving I promise you that I will sleep at least eight hours or more! You’re an extremely brave woman and affected my life deeply.”
“I went home, told my parents and was surprised to find out that they hadn’t thought to alert me. It’s so common that you don’t think about it until it happens to you.”
“The presentation impacted me so much and really made me think twice about getting enough sleep. Before this presentation I was not even aware of the dangers of drowsy driving. Thanks to you I will be getting a lot more sleep. The presentation opened my eye about drowsy driving/tired driving. Being well rested and alert while driving and in regular life is now a priority for me. Thank you for educating my class and others.”
“I would like to thank you for coming to speak with our class. I want you to know after I heard your story it changed my life because first when I heard your story I was getting four hours of sleep but now every time I go to sleep at night I think about what you said, so now I get about nine.”
“I am sorry for the loss of your son Tyler. I couldn’t imagine something this tragic in a person’s life. Hopefully more people will be aware of the consequences involved with drowsy driving and take notice of them immediately. At some point in my lifetime I would like to inform other young drivers like me about drowsy driving and that it is not worth it at all. I was very shocked by the statistics and that drowsy driving is just as bad as drinking and driving. Again I am very sorry for your loss and hopefully more people will realize that it’s not worth it to take a life. This is a really important topic to discuss”
“I have a 17 year old brother and I feel like he is the type of person this would happen to. I will tell him about Tyler and I will make sure he drives safe and does not drive while sleepy. Thank you. Without this story that has touched my heart I would never have known that my brother was in danger. Thank you so much for keeping me and my family safe. I didn’t realize how important sleep is and how it could negatively affect drivers if they don’t get enough of it. Since I just got my license in February and also have a job, I sometimes have to drive home from work super late at night. From now on I will always make sure I’m awake enough to drive and if I’m too tired I’ll have one of my parents pick me up. I’m so sorry about your son and I will pray for your family, and I will also inform my friends about how drowsy driving could affect their lives.”
“I had the honor of meeting this young man’s mother today, as she told me her story I cried, not only for her incredible loss, but for her amazing strength, and passion to spread her sons story. This woman and her strength, Love for her child, and passion to keep her son’s memory alive, and use this horrific accident to educate and save… others from ever having to live her family’s nightmare is truly inspiring!! I feel truly blessed to have met her and heard her story, which has inspired me to pass it along. I would love to refer her to our local high school and community college to speak. I believe her message could impact many!!”
“I have learned so much about sleep and I will use it. Thank you for coming and sharing this amazing story with us. I never thought much about being tired and driving. I never knew it could cause so much damage. I never thought a person would actually fall asleep while driving. The story that you told really opened my eyes. I have known the dangers of drowsy driving for some time as it almost cost me my life. On our last family road trip my mom was driving and she had a baby so she had been up with him every night for hours. On our way to our destination my mom fell asleep behind the wheel. We were on a long highway with no traffic. An 18 wheeler was coming our way and she started to drift towards it. I yelled at her to wake up seconds before we had a head on collision and we pulled over to the side of the road for a few hours. I was very touched by the story about Tyler. I can say it made me aware of every time I am in the car with someone. Every morning I wake up my sister to bring me to school. She gets home very late so I imagine she is tired. The last couple days I caught the bus instead because I do not want my sister to get in a drowsy driving accident.”
“Yesterday before the presentations I had no idea that drowsy driving was so dangerous. I also didn’t know not getting enough sleep affected you in so many ways. Kerrie’s presentation made me realize how anything can be taken from you in seconds just by making one mistake. Matt’s presentation made me realize the importance of getting enough sleep every single night. Teenagers often feel invincible and I think it was important for you to address that specific feeling and make all of us aware of the tragedy that can hit anyone at any time. Your presentation had a major impact on how many hours of sleep I get. I used to slip by with perhaps 7 hours. I’m up to 8.5. My grades, though already A’s beforehand, have become easier to achieve”