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It was an unforgettable Labour Day weekend five years ago for Regina’s Amy Kaufmann.
However, it was for the wrong reasons.
The family was in Weyburn for a wedding and, for a while, it was a joyous occasion spent laughing and making fond memories. Kaufmann stayed up to spend some quality time with her brother Tanner.
They were headed off to their campers the next day. But while Kaufmann made it to hers, Tanner never arrived. That night, she woke up to the sound of her mother pounding at her door.
She discovered that earlier that day, Tanner was standing on the side of the road when he was struck by a driver who was three times over the blood-alcohol limit. Tanner was killed instantly.
It was the second time Kaufmann lost a brother to a collision.
“This impaired driver took my brother from us. My parents lost their last son, my nephews lost their dad at five years and seven years old. Alyscia lost her life partner,” Kaufmann said. “The hole that Tanner has left in so many lives is too many to express right now.”
Kaufmann was sharing her story Thursday during an event held by SGI. The driver who killed her brother was a 19-year-old man. As people his age return to school this month, The Owl at the University of Regina was chosen as the venue.
SGI spokesperson Tyler McMurchy noted the symbolism of The Owl as one of the first bars students may be entering legally. It’s a place to meet new friends and to embrace the freedom of moving away from home.
“It marks a new chapter in your life and that’s great,” McMurchy said.
“But it’s just really important knowing that this new freedom and these new opportunities that you have come with responsibilities as well. And the responsibility as an adult, even as a young adult, is to keep yourself safe and to keep others safe.”
According to the provincial insurer, 32 per cent of drivers involved in an impaired driving crash in Saskatchewan last year were between the ages of 18 and 25. That age group is disproportionately represented, as McMurchy said it makes up just 12 per cent of licensed drivers.
Speakers made sure to distinguish those incidents from “accidents,” saying drivers who get behind the wheel impaired are making a bad choice when there are alternatives like having a designated driver, taking a cab or rideshare, staying the night or calling a friend.
Learner and novice drivers, as well as drivers 21 and under, face numerous administrative penalties if caught driving impaired: A minimum 60-day licence suspension, vehicle impoundment, fines, insurance penalties and mandatory driver education.
There also are criminal prosecution and a guilty conscience, as was the case of the man who killed Kaufmann’s brother.
“That young man, he went to jail,” she said. “And now the consequences are on his future. He has to live every day knowing that he took a life, all because of a selfish action to decide to drive while impaired.”
