‘You Have the Power to Save Lives; You Have the Power to Take Lives’

Joel Feldman lost his 21-year-old daughter Casey several years ago when a distracted driver fiddling with his GPS struck her in Ocean City, N.J.

Feldman, a lawyer and creator of EndDD.org, spoke Tuesday to Pennsbury High School students. He warned them about the dangers of distracted driving through demonstrations, facts, video and testimony from a trauma physician from St. Mary Medical Center and a Falls Township police officer.

“You have the power to save lives; you have the power to take lives,” Feldman told the audience of students.

Officer John Yeager said he’s seen plenty of serious accidents and sent a sobering message when he told the students he “picked up a lot of body parts.”

Tuesday was the second time Feldman spoke with Pennsbury High School Students this year. He previously came in fall and has spoken to about 2,400 of the high school’s 3,400 students, many just getting their licenses.

Yeager had students perform tasks with “drunk goggles” on. The demonstration showed the students how impairment made those tasks nearly impossible.

The problem of distracted driving isn’t unique to teenagers, Feldman said. He said adults are just as guilty and urged students to get their parents to put down their phones and pay attention to the road.

“I was a distracted driver until my daughter was killed by a distracted driver,” Feldman said. He noted he often would use his phone while driving and he likely still would if his daughter’s death wouldn’t have opened his eyes.

“Students are generally responsible and want to do the right things,” Tim Philpot, director of the LYFT Prevention Coalition, said. “The End Distracted Driving program that Mr. Feldman brings is a way for us to remind them that, to drive responsibly, they need to avoid common, but deadly distractions that might draw their attention away from the road.”

The event was sponsored by PennDOT, EndDD.org, Lower Makefield Citizens’ Traffic Commission, The LYFT Prevention Coalition of United Way of Bucks County, St. Mary Medical Center, Bucks County Safe Kids and the Anapol Schwartz law firm.