When the drunk driver hit her and her four children, Linda Woods had no idea that she would live to tell about it.
“I am just really grateful that I survived,” Woods said. “The car was a total loss. We could have been killed.”
Even though the accident happened 14 years ago, it still motivates her today.
She and her children, — Latosha, Nathaniel, Iesha and Genia — are part of Community Unity, a group in Granite Quarry that campaigns against drinking and driving and other important issues in the community.
Previously, the group has helped out at Rowan Helping Ministries and organized teen forums for young people to speak about drugs and other issues facing them today.
This Saturday, they will sponsor what they’re calling the Parade for Life in downtown Salisbury.
The march begins at noon and will stretch down Main Street from Horah to Liberty streets.
Woods said Community Unity hopes to send the message that drinking and driving kills. She said that they have scheduled the parade to coincide with the prom season kickoff.
Everyone is welcome to go to the parade, which will have “a couple of bands,” floats, marchers and every other thing that a real parade has.
“It will be just like a holiday parade,”Woods said. “I figure if they can parade for all the other holidays, we should parade for life.”
She said the parade has participation from all of the schools in the county, funeral homes, wrecker services and other safety personnel.
“We just have everything lined up, and it seems to be going really well,”Woods said. “This parade is going to be outstanding ...
“I want to make sure that people have it in their minds that drinking and driving kills.”
As a survivor, she has first hand experience.
The 20-year-old driver who hit her and her children was charged and had been arrested for the same thing before.
“We don’t know what happened after then,”to that driver, Woods said.
But every time she or one of her children have a pain, they remember the accident.
“There’s nothing that we can do” to the drunk driver, Woods said. “It’s something that we have to deal with.”
But she and her family want to convince others not to drink and drive.
That is why they participate in Community Unity.
“We want the community to come together and help each other,” Woods said.
Including Woods and her children, Community Unity members include Krisha Jackson, Stephanie Means, Deloris Gullick, Virgil Knight and Beatrice Vaughters.
“We are trying to sit down and think about other things to involve the community,”Woods said. If anyone has any ideas, she would love to hear them, she said.
“We want to get a project together where we ... work with children that are on drugs,” Woods said. “We want to do a teen forum where they can speak out.”
Anyone that would like to serve on Community Unity or has ideas can contact Woods at 704-209-3386.
Contact Joanie Morris at 704-797-4264 or jmorris@salisburypost.com
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