“I’m so sorry, mom and dad, that you won’t get to see your baby girl walk down the aisle,” said senior Emily Masnica.

Every two years Rocklin High School holds an event called “Every Fifteen Minutes” to demonstrate the emotional impact that drunk driving can have.

Students act out a situation in which a drunk driver causes a car crash, resulting in the the deaths of three people. This year, Karly Avvakumovits died on impact, and John Castle was proclaimed brain dead while Chris Meeks died of severe injuries.

Students and their families participate in this occasion despite the psychological effects this may have on them.  Friends and family are cut off from the “victims” for a day and a half to experience what it may be like if they actually lost them.

Junior Ryan Guinn was one such participant in this event.

“It was a very emotional experience. I didn’t expect to get as emotional as I did,” he said.

According to Ryan, students were picked for this event through teacher recommendations and preparation started in January.

The purpose of this event is to show teenagers how detrimental drunk driving can be to themselves and the people around them.

“It teaches people that one stupid mistake isn’t worth your life,” said Ryan.

Not only does this teach teenagers the consequences, but it can give students new perspectives on life. Because of this experience, Ryan has become much closer to his mother, brother and friends.

The only thing that was different about this year was the teacher recommendations. In prior years, students that wanted to participate were chosen based on applications.

“I thought it was better when you were able to apply because you got to write an essay about why you think you should be chosen,” said senior Chelsea Fitzsimmons, a four-year theater student.

The sign ups allowed all students to apply to be apart of the event. This also would provide more variety in the students eventually chosen to participate.

“If there have been people that have been affected by situations like that and want to participate in it I think they should because it would become more touching and powerful,” Chelsea said.

Many people were upset that there weren’t any sign ups and there was criticism about how all of the kids picked were all well “involved” in school life and what most would consider “popular.” A high percentage of the participants were members ASB, resulting in a lack of variety.

It creates an unintentional message that for someone to be missed they have to be spirited and well-known. It would benefit the entire school body if there were a wider range of students involved, not just the kids in sports, dance and ASB. What about the kids in the Science Olympiad? Or the mathletes? Or what about the kid who’s future isn’t perceived as the best and brightest?

Other than that, the conversation within the vehicles seemed somewhat staged and unrealistic. It sounded very scripted and as soon as Chris Meeks, Sarah Ehrhardt and Shiloh Kluding started talking about how great Karly Avvakumovits’s  future was going to be, you instantly knew she was going to be the one who died in the crash.

The funeral proved to be much more emotionally impactful. The speeches of students Ryan Guinn, Emily Masnica and Shiloh Kluding reduced many students to tears. But the most impactful part of the funeral was hearing the parents deliver their speeches to their children and hearing them choke back tears.

This event delivers a reminder of mortality. It reminds us that even when we are at our peak, one mistake can cost us our lives.