JMM Speaking » Drinking & Driving

Speaking Is Not Always Easy

Johnny — Wed, 18 May 2011 21:27:16 +0000

Hey Everyone, sorry it’s been awhile since I have posted anything. Life has been pretty crazy lately. Recently I was let go from my job as a Customer Service Associate with Columbia Fuels. I started with them in the fall of 2007 and advised them that I would need time off periodically to present and it was not a problem. Well before I was let go recently, I was advised by my manager that it was a different company I would have to choose, my job with them or my speaking. Well that was a no brainer. My life is my speaking and if the company I work for can’t accept that and work with me then it is their lose as I am one great loyal employee. So lucky for me I was able to travel to the states for three weeks and work with the Connecticut Burns Care Foundation. I have been speaking more here in BC with ICBC but that will slowly come to a season end here in a few weeks.

So now I am faced with the challenge of getting a job that will allows me the flexibility to have time to speak when needed. I must say I have had a few interviews this week and last week and now I wait with crossed fingers to see if they call me back for a second interview.

I must say that doing the speaking is very challenging while working fulltime. One thing I discovered is that it takes dedication to do this. Sometimes I feel it would be easier to just give it up and get a fulltime job and not do the speaking at all. Wow this would free up so much of my time and I could get a fulltime job where I wouldn’t have to worry about taking tme off to speak. The more I think about it the more I consider it. If it wasn’t for the fact that I know I have and will continue to, help so many people, I just might stop. I can’t stop though because it means too much to me. I will just have to stop and breath and refocus and keep at it.

Yesterday I had a great day. I spoke in the morning at Langley Secondary School to a great audience. The students were great and had some great questions after. I then went for a run in the evening with Leanne and Karen from ICBC. We ran 4.2 miles with a great view of the water and down through Whiterock. Thanks girls for the company on such a beautiful night for running.

Today I spoke at Yale Secondary School in Abbottsford, BC. This school was great as well and the students were wonderful. You can tell you really reach the students by the feedback and great questions they have. I really appreciate my contract with ICBC which funds these school presentations when the schools can’t afford them.

Now I am back on the ferry heading back home till my next presentation next week at LA Matheson Secondary School.

A Night To Not Be Forgotten

Johnny — Fri, 29 Apr 2011 16:31:05 +0000

Seventeen years ago today was what started out to be a regular Friday night like any other Friday night for four teen buddies. Life in a small town as a teenage guy was pretty routine and we all lived for the weekend. Why the weekend? Well the weekend was considered “Party Time”. It’s when you got to hang out with all your friends and turn up the tunes and kick back a few drink or a lot of drinks or if you were into drugs it was your time to consume them. I can tell you I remember a lot of these crazy nights and I can say I don’t remember a lot of those crazy nights because I had partaken in too much fun and too many drinks. This was the teenage life in a small town on the weekends, or at least it was in my hometown.

April 29, 1994, was starting to be just like another Friday night. Jason(my best friend), Jimmy, Aaron and myself all met up at the pool hall in St. Stephen, if I recall it was called “The Shark’s Club”. We played pool as we discussed our plans for the evening and it was decided that we would go to a pool hall in another town called McAdam, which was 45 minutes away. Our first crisis was we had to get some booze for the journey and once that crisis was overcome we embarked on a journey that would change so many people’s lives in that small town.

Some look back and say wow with all the poor choices they made in their own lives it’s hard to believe they made it out alive. So many people look at me and say this could of been them. Well after a night of drinking and playing pool in a strange town, flirting with some local girls, we decided to head back home to St. Stephen. In my day we were always taught to not drink and drive as it is very dangerous. This was the golden rule “Don’t drink and drive and make sure you have a sober driver.” Jimmy was the driver this night and he was driving his own car and he was sober. The thing was there were a lot of poor choices made that night one all our parts, now that I look back.

Long story short, there was a single car crash the took the lives of three of my friends and it left me with burns to 75% of my body. That single car crash has affected so many people in this small community.

When something goes wrong, we are so quick to want to blame someone for it. Some would say Jimmy was driving so it’s all his fault as he was speeding, some would say it’s the other three guys fault for drinking and being loud and rambunctious with the tunes cranked and distracting the driver and not speaking up to tell him to slow down. I burnt 75% of my body and with the lost of my friends accept the blame on myself. I could of spoken up and I could not be drinking that night and there are a lot of poor choices I made that night.

I have made the choice to make sure these boys lives weren’t taken for no reason. Live has so many tough lessons to learn, but some lessons need not be learned through personal experience. I have committed my life to helping others make the right choice in life when faced with difficult choices. I lost my best friend Jason that night, the guy that was like a brother to me.

As I write this it’s so hard to fight back the tears. I love you Jason and will always remember the good times we had. Jimmy and Aaron I miss you guys too. We all had so many good times together and it is dreadful that we no longer have you with us. I promise to you guys, as long as I have a voice and have someone to talk to, your death will not be for nothing.

I have spoken over 350 times across Canada and the US to many different schools and groups. I do this because I know what it likes to lose my best friend and I know what it’s like to be left with burns to 75% of my body. I have been through so much in my life because of this and I do this so that you don’t have to.

Please everyone, think about your choices when in a vehicle and please focus on the task at hand which is driving and put all other distractions away. Obey the rules of the road and be safe, don’t just do it for yourself but do it for those you love and love you and the ones that can’t live without you.

R.I.P. Jason, Jimmy, Aaron

Connecticut School Tour 2011

Johnny — Thu, 21 Apr 2011 19:56:36 +0000

On Friday of last week I wrapped up my Connecticut School Tour.
It was a great 3 weeks on the road. We started at Conard High in Hartford and finished at Fairfield Warde High in Fairfied, CT. I had a great time with each school. Alot of times the schools don’t know who I am and are concerned about having me come in and share my story with their students, for whatever reason. I understand this as their main concern is to protect their students and there is also the point of, is this something the students really need to hear as class time is very important and should not be wasted.
This trip I presented at 13 schools with 5 of the schools being new schools. So 8 of these schools are schools that value my message and have commited to bringing me back. Now thats not to say the news schools wont have me back, actually after speaking with the schools, they advised they are looking forward to having me come back. They were so thankful for me sharing my story with their students and fielding their questions. I must say the students had alot of great questions. You can tell by the questions that the students are really listening.
One thing I try not to do is preach to the students, they don’t need someone else preaching to them. I always tell them that I’m not here to preach to them or tell them what to do. I advise them that I am just telling them what happened to me after making some poor choices as a teenager and then what I went through because of it. I go over choices they will make in a car and to think about what can happen if something goes wrong because this is a what-if situation and this is what I went through because of it. The students respond well to this because they want the responsibility to be able to make the right choice, so I give it to them.
I think the best part of sharing my story is that the students really listens and come up after and say Thank You. There is nothing more rewarding than having a teenager come up to you after the presentation and truely say Thank You. This is why I do this and will continue to do this.
During this tour I was able to explore more options with my presentation. One school had me for 2 days and on the first day I was able to do my full presentation. After the presentation was over I sat with each senior call for Q&A session. This was the first time I had done this and felt it worked out perfect. I got the students to tell me what choices I talked about. After they had listed all the choices I then oprned it up for discussion to get their ideas on how they can help each other stand up and be strong so they can make those tough choices. This was fun and the students appreciated the open dialogue.
I want to thank the Connecticut Burns Care Foundation for funding this tour and also Susan for all her hard work in getting this all organized. I also want to thank the staff at the Holiday Inn in Bridgeport, CT, they were so friendly and helpful and professional, I highly recommend this hotel.
It was a great 3 weeks in CT and now I’m on vacation for a week with my wife in Las Vegas. Wish us luck as we enjoy this great city and all it has to offer.
Thanks for taking the time to read my blogg.

Another Great Day On The Road

Johnny — Tue, 15 Mar 2011 03:33:19 +0000

Today was a great day on the road. I woke up in Downtown Vancouver at my brother-in-laws Steve’s place. Then I headed over to Langley for my first presentation at James Anderson Learning Center. I did stop on the way to get a Starbucks Americano coffee which gave me enough energy to power me through 2 presentations. Even though it was torrential rain that greeted me in Langley, it did’t slow me down. I managed to get inside without getting too soaked and got all set up for the presentation. It started on time and was a pretty amazing talk.

As I find myself doing more presentation I find I am getting better and this is better for the students as they are more engaged. I find my biggest challenge as a speaker is talking about my feelings. I recently realized that I need to talk more about my feelings and what I was feeling as I went through my journey. The students really connect more when there is more feelings discussed in the presentation and today was a true testament to that.

After my presentation I had a student come up to me and ask “How I was able to get through the tough times?” I told him that I was surrounded by people who loved and cared for me. He told me that he was going through something tough as well and I told him he needs to surround himself with people that will help him and not to turn to drugs and alcohol as they don’t solve anything. I will be praying for this young man so that he finds the strength and support to get through the tough times.

After the first presentation was over I headed over to my second presentation at Langley Fine Arts School in Fort Langley. Wow it’s so nice to go into these Fine Arts Schools that are all set up with a stage and house sound. The setup here was quick and after a sound test was done I was then ready for my second presentation of the day. This one was much better than the first and I was told it was my best one yet, and this from someone who has seen me many times. I was told that it was serious and funny and engaging. I have to admit I thought it was pretty good. I feel the more I do the better I get and this proves it. I guess the rule is to keep it fresh and real so the students can relate.

I am now at the ferry terminal awaiting my ferry back home. Tomorrow I am back to my other job which I am only at for another week. They decided to lay me off early as I require too much time off for “running my own business” as my manager says. Well if I have to give up my steady paying job to do these talks, I guess I must say goodbye to that steady pay. It’s days like today that make what I went through as a burn survivor all worth it. I know there are students today that will be changed after my presentation and that is all the thanks I need.

Message from a student from a past presentation

Johnny — Fri, 11 Feb 2011 16:55:11 +0000

I have been going through old emails and thought I’d post this message from a student that attended one of my presentations. It’s emails like this that make me work so hard to reach as many students as I can. Thank you Laura for this powerful message.

Hi John,
You came to my school yesterday and gave what I thought to be a very impactful presentation. I just wanted to thankyou for giving us your time. It ment alot to me seeing those pictures and you really helped me to realize how dangerous driving really is. My brother is always speeding and racing and i try to get him to stop and slow down because I don’t know what I would do without him, but he never listens. Then yesterday after seeing you and hearing your story I came home and told him about it. Today he came to pick me up from school and as we were driving home I noticed he was driving considerably slower. I’m hoping that the stories I told him were the cause of this change and that he will keep it up. Thankyou again for your time and everything you have put into this, I along with so many more students have been touched by your story and truely appreciate what you have to offer. You will be in my prayers.

Sincerely,
Laura S

Alberta SADD Reference Letter

Johnny — Tue, 14 Dec 2010 06:46:01 +0000

I had the pleasure of speaking at the Provincial Alberta SADD(Students Against Drinking & Driving) Conference on Nov 6/10. The conference was a total success and I loved being a part of it. It was great to see so many students being active members of SADD. The guys at Alberta SADD wrote me a great reference letter which you can read below.
Click on link below to read letter.

Alberta SADD Reference Letter

Picture from Kerrobert Composite School Presentation

Johnny — Tue, 14 Dec 2010 01:13:39 +0000

I had a great time presenting at Kerrobert Composite School. Here are a few pictures that were taken at the presentation. I hope you enjoy and “Thank You” Kerrobert Composite School for gaving me. I hope everyone stays safe this holiday season.

Kerrobert Composite School Presentation

Johnny — Sat, 11 Dec 2010 18:13:52 +0000

Hey Everyone I had a great time Presenting at Kerrobert Composite School in Kerrobert, Saskatchewan.

Dec 9/10 Video Blog – Saskatoon

Johnny — Fri, 10 Dec 2010 05:19:50 +0000

Hey check out my video blog I uploaded today.

SADD week in December at Kerrobert Composite School

Johnny — Tue, 07 Dec 2010 05:38:42 +0000

I am very excited to be presenting at Kerrobert Composite School for their SADD week in December. This is one school that is committed to preventing any traffic related fatalities this Holiday Season. I want to thank Alanna and all those in the SADD group at Kerrobert Composite School for inviting me to be apart of their SADD week in December. If I can save just one life then it will be worth everything I have been through. See you all very soon.

John Westhaver
Burn Survivor/Professional Speaker
www.jmmspeaking.com