Mike Lutzenkirchen’s son Philip was a former Auburn football player with NFL scouts watching. In 2014, after a night of drinking with friends, he got in a car that police say was speeding and blew through a stop sign. Both men in the vehicle were over the legal alcohol limit. Philip didn’t come home.
His father turned that loss into the Lutzie 43 Foundation, which now visits schools, agencies, and law enforcement trainings to tell young drivers the truth about what happened that night. The foundation’s ask is simple: take 43 seconds before you drive to check your head, your hands, and your eyes. Are you clear? Are you sober? Are you paying attention? Then buckle up, because seat belts cut the risk of dying in a crash nearly in half.
With more than 42,000 traffic deaths nationwide each year and Georgia already past 200 this year, the Lutzenkirchen family’s message travels well. Here at home, where we’re sharing the roads with spring training crowds, beach traffic, and an awful lot of year-round road construction, 43 seconds to check yourself is a tiny ask with an enormous payoff. Have you ever talked to your teenager about their passenger responsibilities, not just their driving? Tell us in the comments.
