MADD and Nationwide's PowerTalk 21 Conference convinced parents of student athletes to talk to their underage kids about consequences of alcohol

His injuries from an underage drunk driving crash wiped Louis Bianco's memory of his mom dieing in his arms

LOS ANGELES (PRWEB) April 22, 2018

On Saturday, April 21, during Alcohol Awareness Month, Mothers Against Drunk Driving® (MADD) and national sponsor Nationwide hosted a Power Talk 21 press conference and forum for parents and all role models of underage youths in team sports at LA Galaxy's Stub Hub Center. PowerTalk 21 is all about empowering and encouraging parents to help steer their underage kids away from the choice of drinking alcohol due to its severe consequences. The event was also broadcasted live on MADD's Facebook page.

Impactful speakers including injured victim Louis Bianco, who left everybody in the room teary-eyed, convinced parents to have regular and intentional conversations with their kids about the consequences of alcohol.

"Because of my injuries, I have a picture of my mom, but I don't remember her or the times we spent together. I have been told that I held her in my arms as she died of cancer, but I don't remember. That is a pain I carry in my heart every moment," said Louis Bianco, a victim who suffered major physical and psychological injuries after his bicycle slammed into an underage drunk driver's SUV when he was biking on Sunset Blvd. in 2009. The driver did not yield when turning left on a street causing Louis' bike to crash into her vehicle causing him to fly into her SUV's window. While he is grateful for being alive even with the impact of the crash, his PTSD, agoraphobia, memory-loss and dentures remind him of the crash every day. "My fiance Adriana and my beautiful service dog Shelby saved my life after the crash."

Among speakers included MADD National President Colleen Sheehey-Church whose sober and seat-belted son Dustin was killed when the underage drunk and drugged driver whose car he was in, crashed into a river after a pizza night with friends. Other speakers included MADD Southern California Regional Executive Director Pat Rillera, Penn State Professor of Biobehavioral Health and Prevention Research Center Dr. Robert Turrisi, Californian student athletes' parent Candy Buckner, MADD Power of Parents program presenting sponsor Nationwide representative Kortnee Campbell and LA Galaxy representative Kyle Rosso.

While urging all parents to have intentional and ongoing conversations with their children about the consequences of drinking alcohol, Dr. Turrisi pointed out, "Studies show that kids rate parents who don't allow their children to drink alcohol better than those who do allow their underage children to drink alcohol."

Every year in April, MADD and its partners hold PowerTalk 21, a national event to encourage parents to have open and intentional conversations with their underage children about the dangers of drinking. This year, MADD's focus is on parents of student athletes because studies show team sports act as a protective factor for younger children, but participation in team sports turns into a risk factor for youth as they age. Parental influence is more important as children age.

When student athletes understand the dangers of underage drinking, they are motivated to avoid unhealthy behaviors, like underage drinking.

Parents can download free Power of Parents handbooks for parents of middle school and high school students at http://www.madd.org/powerofparents.

If you would like to interview any of the speakers from the conference, or if you need anything else, please call Fatima at 972-489-3713.

About Mothers Against Drunk Driving
Founded in 1980 by a mother whose daughter was killed by a drunk driver, Mothers Against Drunk Driving® (MADD) is the nation's largest nonprofit working to end drunk driving, help fight drugged driving, support the victims of these violent crimes and prevent underage drinking. MADD has helped to save more than 350,000 lives, reduce drunk driving deaths by more than 50 percent and promote designating a non-drinking driver. MADD's Campaign to Eliminate Drunk Driving® calls for law enforcement support, ignition interlocks for all offenders and advanced vehicle technology. MADD has provided supportive services to nearly one million drunk and drugged driving victims and survivors at no charge through local victim advocates and the 24-Hour Victim Help Line 1-877-MADD-HELP. Visit http://www.madd.org or call 1-877-ASK-MADD.

For the original version on PRWeb visit: http://www.prweb.com/releases/2018/04/prweb15431902.htm