HADLEY — New Year’s Eve and drunken driving, unfortunately, have become synonymous in the collective consciousness. But that gave two local woman, Ally Jenks and Lauren Sankey, an idea to help ring in 2018 by engaging in some harm reduction.
The two Hopkins Academy graduates were home for the holidays and decided that acting as free designated drivers might prevent some people from driving drunk.
“I think the whole point, especially on New Year’s, is keeping people safe,” Jenks told the Gazette.
So Jenks posted a message on social media — Twitter and Snapchat — for others to see: “Doing sober rides tonight for FREE from 9 pm until 2 am. We can fit 5 people & yes you can have the aux,” she said, referring to the auxiliary cable used to play music from a phone over the car’s speakers. “Please no drinking and driving on New Year’s Eve.”
Jenks and Sankey, who are friends from their high school days, offered rides to anyone in Hadley, Amherst, Northampton, Sunderland or Belchertown.
“I had about six phone numbers text me and ask me to pick them up at various locations,” Jenks said. Some were people she and Sankey knew, but two they had never met before. “Everyone was really respectful and gracious.”
Jenks said the experience was rewarding, particularly because of the painful nature of drunken driving and its consequences.
“It’s a sad thing that happens too much, especially on New Year’s,” she said.
To anyone who knows Jenks, it may not come as a surprise that she was out volunteering to help others during a night of parties.
Jenks had an impressive list of accomplishments under her belt by the time she graduated from Hopkins Academy, including receiving the Gazette’s first Young Community Leader Award. She was the president of the school’s Pro Merito Honor Society, was captain of the girls basketball and soccer teams, served on the Student Council, played in the band, was a peer mentor and held down several part-time jobs.
Now at UConn, Jenks is finding her groove studying medical lab science. She just finished her first semester there.
“It was good,” she said of the semester. “It was a little hard, but I figured it out at the end.”
Back from school for the holidays, Jenks said Sankey and her altruistic deed didn’t just make them feel good; it was also a blast for them on New Year’s Eve.
“It was fun,” she said with a laugh. “We would play their music, it was great.”
Dusty Christensen can be reached at dchristensen@gazettenet.com.