Charlottetown students learn importance of sober driving at MADD presentation

MADD held a presentation on sober driving for P.E.I. students on Monday.

Grade 9 students in Charlottetown learned about the importance of sober driving at an event hosted by Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) Canada and the Prince Edward Island Liquor Control Commission.

The event, held at Stonepark Intermediate School on Monday, was part of MADD’S 2025-2026 school program. It’s designed to provide a look at the “dangers and consequences of driving after consuming alcohol, cannabis and/or other drugs,” according to a news release from the group.

“Road crashes are a leading cause of death among youth in Canada, with alcohol, cannabis and/or other drugs involved in more than half of those crashes,” said Dawn Regan, chief operation officers of MADD Canada, in the release. “We want young people to understand the dangers and consequences of impaired driving, and how much power they have to prevent these tragedies.”

In an interview with CTV News Atlantic, Regan said P.E.I. leads the country in impaired driving.

“We want people to know it’s never worth the risk,” Regan said.

Brenda Simmons’s son Jacob was 27 when he was killed by a drunk driver in 2020.

“It left a huge void,” Simmons said. “He was a huge part of our lives.

“Impaired driving isn’t just a statistic. It destroys families.”

The event featured a 60-minute presentation with short films that illustrate the risks of impaired driving.

-With files from CTV News Atlantic’s Josh Smith

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