Crashes are the #1 Cause of Death for Ages 16-24 Nationwide. Sharing a Survivor's Story can Increase your Chances on Arriving Alive.
Goshen, New york (PRWEB) February 05, 2017
""Distracted driving” is the term used for operating a vehicle while text messaging or talking on a cell phone. In 2015, it was a factor in 3,459 deaths in the U.S. alone—9.8 percent of all fatalities that year. And while the number of people killed by drunk drivers has decreased 51% since 1982, the number of those caused by repeat offenders has remained steady at 69% for over a decade."
But accidents resulting from impaired driving are responsible for a far greater number of injuries, often serious. On February 6, 2017, at 11:00 AM, Edward Devitt II, founder of nonprofit organization Talking Brains Initiative, will address the specific issue of impaired driving and its correlation to traumatic injuries of the brain. The talk is to be held at Orange Ulster Boces, 53 Gibson Road, in Goshen, New York. Although Mr. Devitt is engaged as a speaker year-round, this particular speech is part of the lead-up for Brain Injury Awareness Day, upcoming on Wednesday, March 22, 2017.
Mr. Devitt speaks from his own personal experience. When he was eighteen years old, the car his friend was driving, in which he was the front-seat passenger, crashed into a toll barrier, knocking him into a coma that lasted several days. The brain trauma resulting from the accident forced him to undergo extensive physical and cognitive therapy. Determined to end the silence and lack of information he encountered during his long recovery, he later established TBI, with the intention of establishing a dialog, removing the stigma frequently placed upon those suffering with such injuries, and their loved ones, and setting up a network of support groups. He seeks to fill a unique niche by focusing on addiction problems among veterans with PTS (Post-Traumatic Stress). The public speaking forum is only one aspect of his efforts on behalf of those who have undergone traumatic brain injury.
“Communication is vital,” says the soft-spoken yet fiercely committed Mr. Devitt. “We need to impress upon people that addiction isn’t a weakness, and having a brain injury isn’t a character flaw.”
For further information, please call Orange-Ulster BOCES, at 845.291.0100. Mr. Devitt can also be contacted directly, at 845.341.3809, or Ed(at)BrainNewDay(dot)com. To find out more about Brain New Day, Talking Brains Initiative, and TBI’s support group initiative, or to book Ed Devitt II for speaking engagements, please visit the Brain New Day web site, http://www.BrainNewDay.com.
Media Contact:
Ed Devitt II
845.341.3809
Ed(at)BrainNewDay(dot)com