Teen Shares Dad's Story to Prevent Drunk Driving Deaths

Four years after a drunk driving crash killed her father, Lily Mathews is turning her grief into action by warning teenagers about the consequences of dangerous driving.

The 18-year-old from Robe, South Australia, lost her dad in 2022 when he drove under the influence of alcohol. "He'd done it many times, and just didn't make it home this time," Lily said.

Now she's sharing her story with high school students across the region, speaking publicly about the night police knocked on her door. "Could you imagine receiving the call saying your loved one just died?" she asked hundreds of Limestone Coast students at a road safety event last week.

Lily was one of four road trauma survivors who spoke at South Australia Police's Safer Journeys program in Mount Gambier. The event marks only the second time the program has traveled to regional areas, bringing virtual reality demonstrations, driving simulators, and mock crash exercises to students.

Senior Sergeant Sue O'Connor organized the sessions specifically for country communities. "Country people are still dying on country roads," she said. "It's really important to get out and get that message home to young people about to start driving."

The Ripple Effect

Students said hearing real stories from real people changed how they think about driving. Brady Lock, a year 11 student at Mount Gambier High School, said meeting trauma victims in person made their warnings impossible to ignore. "You realise how important it is," he said.

Learner driver Emily Denton, a year 12 student at Tenison Woods College, said the session will change how she drives. "For regional students just coming onto our Ps, it's very important that we hear this kind of stuff," she said.

The program's success in regional areas is already inspiring expansion plans. Senior Sergeant O'Connor hopes to bring the event to more parts of South Australia and return to the south-east in the future.

Lily said speaking about her emotions was daunting, but the message matters too much to stay silent. "You're lucky until you're not," she told students.

Her father's death was preventable, and Lily is making sure other families don't have to learn that lesson the same way.