DEAR ABBY: I am a sophomore in high school. A short time ago, a freshman at my school was killed. He was walking home from a friend's house, and on his way he was hit by a drunk driver. (He was in a crosswalk.)
Abby, he was 6-foot-7 and on the football team. We called him the "gentle giant." It was a huge loss, and many people at school have been suffering this past week. His family is doing the best they can to cope with this.
Our school has sold 250 shirts made in his honor and is donating the money to his family. He is missed and was loved by so many people. Everyone at school wants to help make sure that no one has to go through this kind of tragedy again. What other ways can my school get involved with helping to support not drinking and driving? -- GRIEVING IN SAN JOSE
DEAR GRIEVING: Please accept my deepest sympathy for the loss of your classmate. His death should be a reminder to those he left behind just how fragile and precious life can be. An effective way to memorialize him would be to see that every student in the school who takes a driving course from now on signs a contract promising not only to not mix drinking and driving, but also not to get into a car that is being driven by a person who is "under the influence."