I am a deputy sheriff with the Stafford County Sheriff's Office, assigned as a school resource officer at Brooke Point High School.
I want to thank the students of Brooke Point High School who have turned out in support of the "Save Your Tailgate: Buckle Up" challenge sponsored by Youth of Virginia Speak Out.
YOVASO is a teenage highway safety program. It works to establish clubs in high schools to encourage teenage drivers to develop safe driving habits and educate young teenage drivers on the consequences of unsafe or irresponsible decisions when it comes to operating autos.
YOVASO is in partnership with Virginia State Police. The program began in Roanoke in 2001 in response to the increasing number of teenage traffic fatalities.
Initially, 50 students signed up to support our first campaign. The "Save Your Tailgate: Buckle Up" challenge begins Sept. 28 and goes until Oct. 16.
The YOVASO Club is not just for the three-week campaign; it is an ongoing effort to remind teens about safe driving.
The students have already begun to tell their peers about seatbelt use and driving safely.
We initially were only going to do the campaigns that YOVASO sponsored, but Brooke Point wanted to start the YOVASO Club at the school. They will be trained as youth traffic safety advocates by a regional trainer of YOVASO.
I'd like to thank all the students who came out in support of safe teen driving, as well as Wendy Payne and Sheriff Charles Jett for all their support.
Carol R. Burgess
Stafford
The writer is a deputy with the