Dec. 13 saw G.F. Kells welcome Michelle Golebiowski a road safety speaker and advocate. Students from G.F. Kells and Manor School listened as Golebiowski spoke about the loss of her best friend, Amanda Frizzley, in 2007.
"Mandy was like a sister to me," Golebiowski explained to the students.
Frizzley, a tow truck driver, had been working late and at just after four in the morning was struck by a drunk driver going over 100 km per hour in Winnipeg. He was not only speeding, but going the wrong way on a one-way and ran a red light. His truck slammed into the tow truck Frizzley was driving and she was thrown from the vehicle which then landed on top of her. She died at the scene.
Quite often Golebiowski would join her friend in the tow truck, riding along and keeping her friend company. She had in fact been asked to join Frizzley this fateful night, but Golebiowski had declined to focus on her studies as she had just begun university and had been drained following her grandfather's funeral that day.
The next morning a knock came at Golebiowski's door. Not expecting anyone that early she answered to find a friend and fellow tow truck driver of Frizzley's. As he explained what had happened he broke down in tears and Golebiowski had to come to terms with the news that a drunk driver had killed her best friend.
That morning Golebiowski went to school, not knowing what to do with herself and decided she needed to keep busy, but when she arrived she was met with newspapers displaying a photo of the crash. Seeing the collision that took her friend's life and which could have taken hers if she had accepted the ride along offer over homework, added to the difficulties of dealing with what had just happened.
This event in Golebiowski's life propelled her into becoming an advocate for ending drinking and driving, for people to find a safe way home that doesn't risk their lives, the lives of their friends, or the lives of anyone else on the road because that person is someone's family member and friend.
"I want you to enjoy the rest of your life," Golebiowski stated. Emphasizing the fact that her friend's death was preventable and she would rather be standing there talking to her friend than giving this talk.
"You make a choice. There will be an outcome and you need to find a solution. The best way to do that is to talk to somebody," Golebiowski said, "call a friend, a family member, or a tow truck."
She encouraged people to do something when their friends go to drive after drinking, to not get in the vehicle with them, and to call the police if there is a drunk driver on the road.
"I would feel responsible if something happened to someone and I didn't do anything about it," Golebiowski explained. The repercussions of that person being mad at you are easier to live with than them possibly dying or possibly taking another's life.
Golebiowski also spoke about distracted driving. Using the statistic of being 23 times more likely to be in a motor vehicle collision if texting while behind the wheel. She told the youth to be wary of the road.
"I have no problem asking for a friend's cell phone and tossing it in the glove box or just powering it off because they're risking my life now, so stick up for yourself," Golebiowski told the youth.
Hoping to make a difference and prevent such tragic events as what happened to her friend Golebiowski now tours and shares her experience, which appeared to be well received by the students who were quite somber throughout the presentation.
For more information visit: www.michellegolebiowski.com.
