Photo by Michelle Zlomke
    A Broken Bow High School student is escorted back to class by Nebraska State Patrol Sargaent Bob Rose, left, and Custer County Sheriff’s Office Sargaent Dan Osmond. The student was a participant in the Grim Reaper program at the school Feb. 1, and in turn had to wear this t-shirt for the rest of the day, as a reminder that someone dies in an alcohol related crash every 32 minutes in this country.

By ELLEN MORTENSEN
Chief Managing Editor

    Every 32 minutes, someone in the United States dies as the direct result of an alcohol related motor vehicle accident. On Feb. 1, that statistic came to life at the Broken Bow High School.
    It’s called the Grim Reaper program, and is designed to teach teenagers the consequences of underage drinking and driving. Throughout the school day, every 32 minutes, the “grim reaper” visited a classroom and removed a student from class. The class was then read a death notice informing them of the details of a fatal alcohol related crash that claimed the life of their classmate.
   

Meanwhile, the “dead” student was taken back to the conference room where he, too, was read a copy of the death notice. The student was also read a goodbye letter written by their parents.
    The students for the program were selected ahead of time and permission was obtained from their parents to participate. The parents were also asked to write a letter to their child telling them how losing them made them feel.
    The students were asked to write a letter back to their parents in response to the goodbye letter. The students also had to wear a black t-shirt to single them out from the other students, for the remainder of the school day.
    They were not to speak to any of their classmates - only to teachers and other students with the same black t-shirts. The point was to simulate the effects of losing a classmate, and the effects that loss would have on parents, teachers and friends.
    Each time the reaper appeared in the halls, chimes were rang over the schools PA system warning the students that another victim was soon to be lost. 
    None of the students were aware the program would be in their school that day, including those participating. According to Sargaent Dan Osmond with the Custer County Sheriff’s Office, co-chair of Safe Communities for Custer County and organizer of the event, that made this program more successful.
    “I was involved with the Grim Reaper program at the Anselmo-Merna school a few years ago,” said Osmond. “That time the kids knew we were coming, and it didn’t seem to have quite the impact this one did.”
    The element of surprise was evident with the first student taken from class. Osmond, portraying the reaper, and Nebraska State Patrol Sargaent Bob Rose, entered the classroom and asked a student to leave with them.
    At first the young man thought it was a joke, shrugging off attempts by the reaper to get his attention. Sargaent Rose, speaking in a firm voice, instructed the student to grab his things and come along.
    Other students in the class mocked and teased as the young man left the classroom, totally unaware of what was going on. He was led to the school’s conference room, where other members of the Safe Communities committee waited. There he was read an emotional letter from his mom, and the copy of his death notice.
    Throughout the day, the atmosphere in the school began to change, as students realized the significance of what was taking place. Committee members reported that at least one teacher even cried as a student was being led by her classroom by the grim reaper and accompanying police officers.
    All-in-all, Osmond said he thought the program was a success. One parent of a student taken from class later told the Chief the project gave her and her daughter an opportunity to talk about underage drinking and driving and the consequences of those actions.
    “She came home from school and told me she had cried all day,” the mother said. “That gave us a chance to talk, and we talked for two hours. It was a good thing.”
    An assemble was held at the school that afternoon where Sargaent Osmond explained to the student body what the Grim Reaper program is all about. Osmond also shared a personal experience of having to tell the parents of a teenage girl that their daughter had been killed in an auto accident involving alcohol.
    Unable to retain his emotion, Osmond remarked, “As you can see, it still gets to me.”