Activities were held at LCHS during "Prom Week," April 14-18, to encourage students to stay away from drugs and alcohol on the big night.

Sponsored by the LCHS Student Council, the activities included "Ghost Out Day" on Tuesday.

During the day, the "Grim Reaper" took students out of class to transform then into ghosts. When the students returned to class, their faces were covered with white paint, and they were not allowed to speak to anyone except other ghosts.

The purpose of the activity was to remind students that every 30 minutes, a person dies in an alcohol-related accident in the United States.

After participating in Ghost Out Day, many students made the comment that the Grim Reaper would always remain in the back of their minds.

The exercise was coordinated by the student council. The council members are:

Ninth Grade - Taylor Dukes, Liz Dunnaway, Tiara Wynn, Eleese Matthews, Meg Ball, and Jeremy Latimer.

Tenth Grade - Hannah Mongrue, Nicole Beard, Hattie Collins, Tom Reed, Alisha Brown, and Krystal Anderson.

Eleventh Grade - Daravious Cullars, Latoya Harris, Vance Tarver, Breauna Jenkins, Kayla Lyons, and Amanda Broom.

Twelfth Grade - Kitty Ball, Vance Woods, Coty Norman, Raphael Albea, Jessica Wynn, and Sara Anne Remsen.

Then, later in the day, a mock drunkdriving accident was staged on the football field to impress upon the student body that not only does driving under the influence hurt people, driving carelessly can claim lives as well.

The following individuals took part in the simulation: Daravious Cullars, Jessica Wynn, Amanda Broom, Vance Woods, Kayla Lyons, Jeremy Latimer, Coty Norman, and Raphael Albea, all members of the student council.

Ernie Doss, director of the Lincoln County Department of Public Safety (DPS); Jill McKinney, public information officer for the county; Wanda Duncan, DPS office manager; Martin Braden, a DPS battalion chief; EMTs Rita Hussey, Jonathan Doss, and Brandon Reed; Gilbert French, paramedic.

David Montgomery, volunteer; a helicopter from Air Med in Augusta; Kevin Beggs, deputy coroner for Lincoln County; Officer Mike Greeson of the Lincolnton Police Department; and Deputy Darryl Bentley with the Lincoln County Sheriff's Office.

This year's scenario was a little different from the ones in years past, with two cars involved in the accident. A vehicle with an impaired student driver behind the wheel stopped in the middle of the road for a "Chinese Fire Drill." While everyone was running around the car, another vehicle, whose driver was not impaired but speeding, hit the car.

Kitty Ball, student council president, wrote the script for the scenario, which concluded with the following words: "I lost my best friend. My friends aren't the same. The pain is there all the time, and there's nothing anyone can say or do to make it go away."

During lunch on Thursday, student council members set up various obstacle courses for students to navigate while wearing a pair of "beer goggles." The special goggles helped students experience first-hand how dangerous it is to drive and even walk under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs.

Jill McKinney of the DPS operated a course where students, wearing beer goggles, had to push a hand truck through a narrow, winding area. Ryan Swain, school safety officer, performed sobriety tests on the students and had them weave through traffic cones.

In her remarks, Dana Brennan, student council advisor, extended her appreciation to McKinney and Swain for operating the obstacle courses and to Lincoln County Family Connection and Chief Deputy Marcy Remsen for providing the goggles.

She also expressed her gratitude to the student council members for all of their hard work and to the Lincoln County Department of Safety, Air Med, and others from the community, who made the mock drunk-driving scenario possible.

In conclusion, Brennan said, "I hope the week's activities will continue to serve as a reminder to students of the importance of remaining drug and alcohol free. If it keeps just one student from getting behind the wheel impaired or from driving haphazardly, then it was well worth it. There are some decisions that can't be reversed."