The Porcupine Dante Club hosted the annual MADD vigil this weekend on Sunday beginning at 9:30 a.m.
Items were up for auction at a silent auction which ended later in the day.
Victims and survivors of drunk driving were on location to light candles and tell their stories.
Steve Meunier, president of the MADD Canada Timmins Chapter provided introduced performers, speakers and those who were lighting candles as part of the ceremonies.
One of those in attendance was Natalie Collins, who lost her brother to a drunk driver.
She said “Accidents like what took my brother are totally preventable. It’s never an accident. It’s a choice. A preventable choice.”
She also stated that parents should encourage their children to plan ahead, or to call regardless of time of night if they need a ride after consuming alcohol.
Steve Meunier also stated “Drinking and driving isn’t an accident. It’s a criminal act.”
The vigil is held so that families and survivors can support one another, meet each other if they don’t already know each other from other functions held by MADD, and to share stories.
This event kicks off MADD Red Ribbon Campaign.
This campaign is the longest running awareness event of MADD Canada and Project Red Ribbon is designed to remind and enforce that people do not choose to drink and drive during the holidays.
Red Ribbons are used as a show of support and commitment to drive sober, and drive safely during the holidays and the remainder of the year.
