Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) Saskatoon is calling for new submissions to the Saskatchewan Memorial Monument that honours victims of impaired driving.
Families that have suffered the loss of a loved one due to impaired driving and would like to have their name memorialized are asked to contact MADD by June 6.
MADD Saskatoon president Bonny Stevenson said every year names are “unfortunately” added to the memorial, which is located near Saskatoon City Hall.
“It’s a beautiful piece,” Stevenson said about the monument. “It’s really a way to honour that memory of your loved one.”
Stevenson said a ceremony will take place on June 25 featuring speakers and dignitaries to honour the names being added to the monument.
“It’s actually a really lovely ceremony — a candle lighting, a little tribute to your loved one. It’s a beautiful ceremony.”
Stevenson said for her family, the monument is one more way to honour her son Quinn Stevenson who was killed by an impaired driver in August 2013.
“It’s just another way that Quinn’s life is marked. And it’s always important that we remind people that death by an impaired driver is not an accident.”
“It’s just one of those ways that those people’s names will always be there and at a spot we can go to remember them.”
Applications can be found by contacting MADD Canada Victim Services Manager Gillian Phillips at gphillips@madd.ca
Victims who were killed by the actions of a driver under the influence of drugs or alcohol are eligible to have their names engraved on the monument.
Victims of any impaired boating, ATV and snowmobile collision are also eligible.
A driver who was impaired is not eligible.
The application must include third-party information, such as a newspaper article, court report, or police report that documents that alcohol or drugs were involved in the crash that killed the victim.