What seemed to be a regular Thursday, was anything but for Oakdale High School juniors and seniors on Feb. 8, 2024.

Thanks largely to the coordinated efforts of the OHS administration, area first responders, sponsors and a grant through the California Highway Patrol, the impactful Every 15 Minutes program returned to the high school campus.

A two-day program, Every 15 Minutes is targeted at high school juniors and seniors, challenging them to think about driving under the influence of alcohol, marijuana or other substances.

“Every 15 minutes in the United States someone is killed or seriously injured in an alcohol (related) collision,” California Highway Patrol Officer Tom Olsen shared with the members of the classes of 2024 and 2025 on Thursday morning.

As the classmates sat shoulder to shoulder on the west soccer fields, what was ahead of them was unknown. Last staged in 2019, the Every 15 Minutes program is one which the current student body was unfamiliar with. Shortly after being asked to silence their phones and put them away, a loud bang echoed through the field. Before the students, tarps were pulled back from a staged collision.

A frantic Seth Rodrigues could be heard through the sound system as he made a call to 911. OHS senior Thomas Vierra stumbled from the driver’s seat of the SUV which had t-boned a sedan holding sisters Jessica and Jenna Sanders.

Chaos quickly ensued and chosen students known as the “living dead” made their way onto the scene. The role of the “dead” is to be a present symbol of vacancy in the classroom throughout the day, as well as a visual for the audience on scene of the devastation that can come as a result of one bad decision.

While the scene is staged, the officers responding to the collision, firefighters, ambulance crews and student actors are very much in the moment and real during the demonstration.

The body of junior Jacob Kindrick was bloodied and draped upon the hood of the SUV, the windshield shattered by the impact, throwing the student to his demise.

“Jacob!! Jacob!!” Jessica Sanders could be heard yelling from the driver’s seat of the car she was pinned in.

“We need your help,” Seth yelled to first responders, as they arrived on scene. “Is he going to be okay?”

As the two sisters sobbed, while classmates looked on, the conversation was very real. Jessica pleading for them to please help her sister. Jenna offering words of confusion, both requesting their mom, as chaos around them continued.

“Thought I’d be okay to drive,” Vierra shared with an officer.

“You’re gonna be fine,” Jessica said to her sister Jenna as she was cut from the passenger seat and airlifted via chopper to Memorial Medical Center. Jenna was pronounced “dead” shortly after her arrival at the hospital.

Jessica, also cut from the car and transported to Memorial via ambulance, was pronounced “dead” ten minutes later. In keeping with the real-life scenario of the enactment, parents Jeff and Joanna Sanders reported to the hospital to find both daughters, their only two children, “dead” at the hands of a drunk driver.

Throughout the demonstration a film crew documents everything as it unfolds not only on the scene, but after as well. The Kindrick family reported to the County Morgue to identify their son. Mother Trudy Vierra reported to the County Jail to visit her son after he was arrested for driving under the influence.

None of the participants went home that night.

Each of the student participants on scene, as well as the “living dead,” are sequestered away from their families for the night. Their phones and any communication devices taken away as part of the exercise.

On Friday morning, Feb. 9, the second part of the program was staged. The Oakdale juniors and seniors once again gathered together, this time in the gym. As students filled the bleachers, parents of the participants took seats in chairs set up on the gym floor. A podium, flowers, video screen and a casket were the setting.

“Emergency personnel worked tirelessly to save those involved,” Officer Olsen said at the start of the ceremony.

“The California Highway Patrol does not call these types of collisions accidents,” he continued. “Vehicle collisions are preventable, especially when they involve alcohol or drugs. A student here chose to drink and drive. His decision to drive intoxicated not only took innocent lives, but will haunt him for the rest of his life. Many of which will be spent behind bars.”

As part of the program, family members are asked to read letters written to the “deceased” and the students are asked to do the same. As letters were read, the emotion was very real. Acknowledgment made by each one that even though it was just a 36-hour exercise, it felt very real; almost too real.

“He was kind, he was a leader, he was smart, he was tough, he was a peace maker, he saw everything, he had the driest sense of humor, he was steadfast,” Lisa Kjeldgaard said of her son, Charlie, a member of the “living dead.”

“Everyone loved Charlie,” she continued. “Charlie loved playing football. He hated that he had to wait an entire week to play another game.”

OHS senior Gracie Anderson approached the podium, white face and black sweatshirt as one of the “living dead” students. Her honesty, refreshing, as she shared penning a letter to her family was more difficult than she could handle. Instead, she wrote to the students in the stands.

“Though I am fully aware that the make-up was fake, the lines were fake and it was a generally staged accident, I still ended up getting hit by an emotional semi-truck,” Gracie said.

“I hope and pray that this program can resonate with many people, my friends and family to open their eyes to the damage that one bad decision can lead to,” she continued. “I am so incredibly grateful to have this experience in my life and I hope that everyone else can take this message to heart and continue their life in break and the weekend, safely and responsibly.”

While the testimonies and letters of the families may have felt personal and touching to all those in attendance, it is perhaps the honesty of the keynote speaker who commanded a different type of attention.

Brittany Gomes, 23, shared the story of her best friend and the choices she made which resulted in a 13-year prison sentence, resulting from the death of two individuals. She was high on marijuana at the time.

“She thought it wasn’t so bad because she wasn’t drinking alcohol or popping pills. She kept telling herself it’s just a natural herb, right,” Brittany said of her friend who started smoking at 14.

Described as a student much like those in the bleachers, Brittany shared that her best friend was from a hard-working middle-class family. Not willing to work in the way in which she was raised, she opted for fast money and all the “things” and began selling marijuana at the age of 15.

“She started to feel like she was prospering at what she was doing. Little did she know that she was heading in the path of self-destruction,” Brittany shared. “She felt invincible. Like she was never going to get caught. That driving high would never harm anybody else, because she was good at it and had done it so many times.”

Speaking through tears, Brittany shared with all in attendance about the night of the collision. Her friend driving with her younger brother and friend in tow. Feeling as if she was in complete control. High on marijuana and unaware of how fast she was driving. A two-car collision which cost the lives of two others and placed those with her to need hospital care.

“I could tell you the story about my best friend, because that friend is me,” Brittany stated, adding that she is currently incarcerated at Chowchilla State Prison. “My name is Brittany Gomes, I’m now 23 years old and have changed my life around. I’m paying for what transpired. I will live with this tragedy weighing heavy on my heart for the rest of my life.”

Speaking as one who lived what the Every 15 Minutes program portrays, Brittany said she hopes it makes a difference.

“If my story can impact or change the way at least one of you kids sitting in the bleachers today, then telling my story is worth it,” she continued.

Removing her street clothes and revealing her orange prison attire, students and families appeared both stunned and touched. The keynote speaker was then handcuffed and escorted from the gym.

Officer Olsen returned to the podium to conclude the two-day program.

“We are tired of seeing our youth die from such a preventable act,” Olsen said of his fellow California Highway Patrol officers and all first responders. “As you leave here today remember, you are responsible for the decisions you make in your life. Do not drink and drive. Do not be that person that takes someone’s life. You owe it to yourself, your family and everyone you share the roadway with.”