Published: October 03, 2008 05:54 pm            

Woods speaker to stress the importance of alcohol awareness

As part of Alcohol Awareness Week, Brandon Robinson, a man who received a 28-year prison sentence after being convicted of operating a vehicle while intoxicated causing death and operating while intoxicated causing serious bodily injury, will visit St. Mary-of-the-Woods College to stress the importance of avoiding a reckless lifestyle.

Robinson’s presentation will be at 8 p.m. Monday in Sullivan Parlor in Le Fer Hall at SMWC.

At age 18, Robinson ran a stop sign and crashed his truck into a car, killing three people. He had a blood-alcohol content of 0.099 percent. In 1998, he was convicted on three counts of operating a vehicle while intoxicated causing death and two counts of operating a vehicle while intoxicated causing serious bodily injury. The five convictions resulted in a 28-year prison sentence, and he is currently serving a portion of the sentence in Hamilton County.

Since his conviction, Robinson has told his story to about 20,000 people, always encouraging those in attendance to make positive choices before they hurt themselves or someone else.

This is the third year in a row that SMWC has invited Robinson to the college to be a part of the college’s Alcohol Awareness Week, and Jeff Malloy, SMWC director of campus life, said that the college invited him back because the students really connect with his message.

“Brandon does a phenomenal job connecting with our students and educating them on the consequences of drinking and driving,” Malloy said. “He makes it very clear that the only real difference between him and our students was one accident that changed the course of his life.”

During his presentation, Robinson will show a DVD slideshow of pictures from his life in Hamilton County. He will pass out copies of his brochure “My Journey,” a personal narrative that documents his childhood, prison sentence and conversion to Christianity.

For more information about Robinson’s presentation at St. Mary-of-the-Woods College, contact Malloy at jmalloy@smwc.edu or (812) 535-5219.

        

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