PHOENIX, AZ -- abc15.com reported. As the holidays approach, the families of dozens of victims killed by DUI drivers are sending a powerful message aimed at stopping people who drink and drive.
Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) held a candlelight vigil hosted by ABC15's Steve Irvin, at the Japanese Friendship Garden Saturday.
"You don't know until it happens to you," said Traci Smith, a mother who lost her two young sons when the family was hit by a DUI driver.
Both boys died.
Traci's husband, Frank, said their lives fell apart after they lost their children in January.
"It was like we had our house, and our house just got wiped out," he said. "And the only things we can build are the walls. We'll never have a roof. Our two boys meant everything to us."
Few people can understand the Smiths' anguish, but Saturday they had the company of other families who knew their pain.
"MADD is a great organization, but I wish I wasn't part of it," said JoAnne Brown, whose daughter was killed by a DUI driver three years ago.
"Don't take anything for granted. I trusted my daughter. I knew she would do right things, but I didn't know about another person being out there, not being responsible, and that ended up ending her life," said Brown.
According to MADD, three in every 10 Americans will be involved in a DUI-related accident at some time in their lives.
The faces of those who have been killed by dui drivers are memorialized on quilts, message boards and slide shows by the families who grieve every day.
"I just hope that every mom and dad will not have to go through what we had to go through," said Brown.
Through their hardship, the Smiths also have a clear message to hammer home.
"If you plan ahead that much, to go out and drink, then plan that much to get a driver," said Frank Smith.
.
Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) held a candlelight vigil hosted by ABC15's Steve Irvin, at the Japanese Friendship Garden Saturday.
"You don't know until it happens to you," said Traci Smith, a mother who lost her two young sons when the family was hit by a DUI driver.
Both boys died.
Traci's husband, Frank, said their lives fell apart after they lost their children in January.
"It was like we had our house, and our house just got wiped out," he said. "And the only things we can build are the walls. We'll never have a roof. Our two boys meant everything to us."
Few people can understand the Smiths' anguish, but Saturday they had the company of other families who knew their pain.
"MADD is a great organization, but I wish I wasn't part of it," said JoAnne Brown, whose daughter was killed by a DUI driver three years ago.
"Don't take anything for granted. I trusted my daughter. I knew she would do right things, but I didn't know about another person being out there, not being responsible, and that ended up ending her life," said Brown.
According to MADD, three in every 10 Americans will be involved in a DUI-related accident at some time in their lives.
The faces of those who have been killed by dui drivers are memorialized on quilts, message boards and slide shows by the families who grieve every day.
"I just hope that every mom and dad will not have to go through what we had to go through," said Brown.
Through their hardship, the Smiths also have a clear message to hammer home.
"If you plan ahead that much, to go out and drink, then plan that much to get a driver," said Frank Smith.
.
