![\"jade\"](\"https:\/\/losfresnosnews.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/jade.jpg\")
<\/a>AUSTIN<\/strong> \u2013 The Stephens family is planning their annual holiday feast, but this year, one seat will remain empty. Their daughter Jade was killed when a drunk driver ran a stop sign and T-boned their car, just days before her 10th birthday.<\/p>\n\u201cWe miss her every day, but we feel the loss of her presence particularly around the holidays,\u201d said Eric Stephens, Jade\u2019s father. \u201cWe miss her joy, wit and infectious laugh. No other family should experience a loss like ours due to drinking and driving. All it takes is planning ahead for a sober ride.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Stephens family is sharing Jade\u2019s story through the Texas Department of Transportation\u2019s \u201cPlan While You Can\u201d campaign to communicate the devastating consequences of drinking and driving. The goal is to save lives and decrease alcohol-related crashes, with special emphasis during the holidays when alcohol consumption is more prevalent.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are saving lives through our education efforts and by sharing compelling stories from families who have lost loved ones,\u201d said TxDOT Executive Director James Bass. \u201cHowever, one life lost is one too many. Finding a sober ride is easy and it can save you from being arrested or from injuring or killing yourself or others. By making an effort to plan ahead for a sober ride, together, we can continue to save lives.\u201d<\/p>\n The \u201cPlan While You Can\u201d campaign includes a statewide tour featuring an interactive dodgeball<\/a> game, where participants dodge \u201csnowballs\u201d as virtual drinks are added to the screen. As more drinks are added, the players\u2019 on-screen avatars respond more slowly to players\u2019 movements. Participants experience how drinking can slow their reaction times.<\/p>\n As always, TxDOT strongly encourages everyone to plan for a sober ride before going out. Visit SoberRides.org<\/a> to find alternatives to drinking and driving, such as:<\/p>\n<\/a>As a combined result of the \u201cPlan While You Can\u201d campaign and the efforts of many state and local community partners, including law enforcement, Texas experienced a 9-percent decrease in alcohol-related traffic fatalities during last year\u2019s holiday season (Dec. 1, 2015 – Jan. 1, 2016) compared to the previous holiday season. Still, during last year\u2019s holiday season, there were 2,374 alcohol-related crashes in Texas, resulting in 102 fatalities and 205 serious injuries.<\/p>\n