The Associated General Contractors was proud to sponsor this year's seventh annual #SafeDrivesSaveLives video competition, organized and judged by the Vermont Highway Safety Alliance.

 

Each year, high schoolers across Vermont are challenged to produce 30-second videos cautioning their peers and the broader public against the dangers of distracted driving. This year's top four winners received cash prizes for their work, and their public service announcements will be played at Vermont Lake Monsters games this summer -- spreading the important message to drive safely to thousands of fans.

 

"This initiative is more than just a competition," Sarah Mearhoff, AGC-VT's director of advocacy and communications, said at Friday's award ceremony at the Vermont Statehouse in Montpelier. "It's a call to action, and a chance for young drivers, friends, and classmates to stand up against distracted driving and advocate for safer roads."

 

Along with AGC-VT, Vermont's Lt. Gov. John Rodgers attended Friday's ceremony to congratulate the four winners, as well as Department of Motor Vehicles Commissioner Andrew Collier and VHSA Director Darren McIntyre.

 

According to VHSA, this year's video competition sought to expand the scope of what we often understand to be distracted driving. Distracted driving is not limited to phone use behind the wheel; it can mean adjusting your car's music or climate, checking the GPS, eating and drinking, being distracted by other passengers, including children and pets, or even feeling drowsy or emotional. But according to VHSA, "Every distracted driving death is preventable. A few seconds can change a life forever."

 

You can watch each of the four winners' videos on YouTube. Their PSAs offer an important reminder to us all to drive safely.

 

1st Place: Tobi Thurman, “Breaking Up”

2nd Place: Elizabeth Perrotte, “Oh My Duck”

3rd Place: Peyton Ballard-Charbonneau, “Put the Phone Down”

4th Place: Alexander Underhill, “Don’t Let the Music Take the Wheel”

 

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