Florida Teen Wins "Drive2Life" Contest With Script About Dangers of Drowsy Driving

18-year-old from Clearwater gets $1,000 and trip to NYC to film his PSA; The National Road Safety Foundation will air spot on 160 TV stations nationwide

News provided by

The National Road Safety Foundation

May 07, 2019, 11:00 ET

NEW YORK, May 7, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- A Florida high school senior has won the grand prize in the 9^th annual Drive2Life PSA Contest, sponsored by The National Road Safety Foundation (NRSF). Etame' Kandy, 18, of Clearwater, FL and a student at Palm Harbor University High School, submitted a script for a public service message about the dangers of drowsy driving to win the top prize out of more than 800 entries from throughout the U.S.

Kandy was flown to New York to work with an Emmy Award-winning producer to shoot and edit his script into a 30-second PSA that will air on more than 160 TV stations nationwide. The winning idea, titled "Drowsy Driving? I think not," depicts an obviously tired teen drinking her morning coffee as she gets into her car. The car warns her she's too tired to drive. After some humorous verbal sparring, the tired teen yawns and gets out of the car, as the voice of the car says, "The road wants drivers, not sleepers."

Kandy, who plans to study computer science in college next year, explained that he wanted to use humor to communicate a serious message. Drowsy driving is a factor in more than 328,000 crashes every year, with the AAA Foundation estimating it takes a toll of more than 6,400 lives and 109,000 injuries annually.

"Etame's idea stood out from so many great ideas we received from throughout the country," said Michelle Anderson of The National Road Safety Foundation. "His concept is timely as today's new cars have technology that can warn us and even talk to us if we stray out of our lane. His PSA makes us think twice before getting behind the wheel when we are fatigued, which is an important message for teens and adults alike."

In addition to being broadcast in May on "Teen Kids News," Kandy's PSA and story will be featured in select fall issues of Scholastic Classroom Magazines. Scholastic, the global children's publishing, education and media company, participated in the Drive2Life contest by distributing it nationwide to grades 6 through 12. The PSA will be viewable on The National Road Safety Foundation's websites at www.teenlane.org and www.nrsf.org.

Four runners-up were also selected in the Drive2Life competition, each winning a $500 prize. Runners-up in the Grades 6–8 category are Helen Marlin, 14, of Homewood, AL and Jeremy Pena, 13, of Hialeah, FL. Runners-up in grades 9–12 are Holden Dahlerbruch, 18, of Rolling Hills Estates, CA and Owen Tai, 15, of Cerritos, CA.

The National Road Safety Foundation, Inc., a 501 (c)(3) non-profit organization founded more than 55 years ago, produces traffic safety programs on distracted driving, speed and aggression, impaired driving, drowsy driving, driver proficiency, pedestrian safety and a host of other safety issues. It distributes the programs free of charge to schools, police and traffic safety advocates, community groups and individuals. It also sponsors contests to engage teens in promoting safe driving to their peers and in their communities. For more information or to download free programs, visit www.nrsf.org or www.teenlane.org, and "Like" us on Facebook.

Contact: David Reich 212 573-6000

SOURCE The National Road Safety Foundation