The Fanshawe Student Union is looking forward to a year that will support Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) and its’ initiatives. The FSU kicked off the year with the Glow Run and Paint Party in support of MADD and the night was a chance for students to have fun and also support a great cause while doing it.
However, there is one Fanshawe graduate who is more than elated when she discovered that Fanshawe has chosen MADD as one of their main charities of choice this year. Sara Neusteter graduated from Fitness and Health Promotion at Fanshawe in 2018 and has also been involved with MADD since 2014.
Pictured: Sara Neusteter with her mother just days before the fatal accident
Neusteter says that she got involved with MADD after being hit by a drunk driver in June 2014, which ended up taking her mother’s life and nearly took her life as well. The crash had immediately killed her mother and left Neusteter with damage that would take years of rehabilitation to recover from. Since the accident, Neusteter says that she has had 13 surgeries thus far, and still has many more to come. After experiencing the most devastating outcome of drunk driving, she started to volunteer at MADD in 2014 as a way to give back to the organization who had also helped Neusteter following the accident.
Since last year, Neusteter is now a board member at the MADD London chapter and seeks to spread awareness for the cause whenever she can. While MADD has visited Fanshawe at the Health and Wellness fair prior to the Glow Run/Paint Party, the FSU also set out to coordinate an event that would put the fun in fundraising. Neusteter worked hard with the FSU to find a way to both raise awareness for MADD London while also ensuring that the night would be a fun event for all students to attend.
@fanshawesu‘s Paint Party has begun at the Sub Courtyard tonight. All proceeds will be donated towards @maddcanada #MADDLondon pic.twitter.com/2WK8kr9lQj
— Ryan C (@RChauXFM) September 14, 2018
While Neusteter says MADD does not advocate for abstaining from alcohol altogether, she hopes students will learn to celebrate safely, and she hopes that her story as well as many others’ can help illustrate this. She hopes that moving forward, the increased awareness on campus will remind students to make safe decisions while drinking.
Those who are interested can visit the MADD London Chapter’s website to find out more information.
