Campaign created seven years ago to save lives
By Charlotte Mandy
Medford Sun Volunteer Student Contributor
If you drive around the area, you may be familiar with the yellow Heads Up, Eyes Forward! magnets on many car bumpers, especially those of students. You may have also seen the Safe Driver of the Month parking spot at Shawnee and other Lenape Regional High School District schools as well.
What is Heads Up, Eyes Forward! and what qualifies students for the parking space?
It is quite simple. Heads Up, Eyes Forward! is a campaign against the distracted driving that is rampant in an age of technological connectivity and constant activity. A group of enthusiastic LRHSD students started the campaign to spread awareness about the dangers of distracted driving. To participate in the campaign against this dangerous behavior on the road, pick up a magnet from the front office and put it on your car, and follow Heads Up, Eyes Forward! on social media. Students will be eligible to be chosen once a month as the Safe Driver, gaining access to a space in the front staff lot, as well as receive gift cards.
Consider also that distracted driving is not just an issue among high school students and displaying the magnet may remind your fellow drivers that you do not have to be intoxicated to seriously endanger yourself, passengers, other drivers and pedestrians. Glancing at phones, eating or drinking, fiddling with the controls or radio, high emotions and even hands-free calls all count as distracted driving, which kills nine people each day and injures a thousand (according to cdc.gov). And yet, people still do it. Vehicles have become an extension of the home, to the imperilment of everyone on the road.
Heads Up, Eyes Forward! was created seven years ago to save lives, and each year students contribute to educating their peers and spreading this message to the community.
It is something to think about each time you get behind a wheel; you are responsible for yourself and the impact of the machine you are controlling. Give it your full attention.
The LRHSD Heads Up, Eyes Forward! team requests that students and community members like them on Facebook, follow the campaign on Twitter @HeadsUpEyesFWD, and subscribe to a dedicated Heads Up, Eyes Forward! YouTube channel.
They are also open to Lenape District clubs that would like to partner with them. For example, Seneca High School’s Community Service Club and Interact Club just recently partnered with the LRHSD Heads Up, Eyes Forward! team to create a first-place float for the Medford Halloween Parade.
Charlotte Mandy is a junior at Shawnee High School. She is a member of the school’s student newspaper and enjoys writing in her free time.
