Lincoln County High School students prepared for National Teen Driver Safety Week (Oct. 19-25) with both former American Idol star and University of Tennessee graduate, David Francisco, and Fletcher Cleaves, Memphis native whose overall athleticism shifted instantly into overcoming adversity.
David’s story is a powerful mix of faith, forgiveness, and now friendship. While riding his bicycle home at lunch, he was t-boned by a distracted driver who ran a red light going over 40 MPH. David’s body slammed into the windshield and was launched into the air, before crashing into the pavement. His back was snapped, his spinal cord severely damaged, and his left forearm torn open. He would spend nearly a year at the Shepherd Center in Atlanta regaining his mobility. David pushed students to find the meaning when tragedies and adversity happens, “Look at what happens when you choose how you respond. Life isn’t fair, but choose to find the purpose.” David pushed students to have the heart of a lion— grit and heart essential.
Fletcher Cleave carries a similar story. Nearly 15 years ago, a distracted driver, presumed to be texting behind the wheel, left him paralyzed. He was a college freshman with a football scholarship at Lambuth University, but now he was facing one of the biggest challenges of his life. His family would lose their jobs to care for him; however, he would later re-enroll at the University of Memphis, graduating with a degree in Computer Science and travelling the world to remind others that, “The sky is NOT the limit!” Students were encouraged to think outside of the box, and that there are no limitations to what they can achieve and accomplish. Students were challenged and reminded that their choices today will affect their tomorrow. His motivation drove home that driving is one of the most dangerous activities— and only compounded when distracted.
From the CDC, Nine people in the United States are killed every day in crashes that are reported to involve a distracted driver. In the United States, over 3,100 people were killed and about 424,000 were injured in crashes involving a distracted driver in 2019. About 1 in 5 of the people who died in crashes involving a distracted driver in 2019 were not in vehicles―they were walking, riding their bikes, or otherwise outside a vehicle.