Testimonials

Highlights from Exhibit Evaluations - Siena College 11/07/2003 - 12/05/2003

What was your first reaction to the exhibit?

• I thought it was really powerful and really got me to think twice about the choices I make.
• Entering the house and reading the first summary on the wall… I knew I was going to need tissues.  Then seeing her bunny, it just hit me.
• I lost a friend of mine a few years ago due to drinking, so it brought me to thinking about that.  This exhibit brings tears, it is very meaningful.
• It reminded me of an experience I have had and brought back a lot of memories.
• The exhibit is very heartfelt and well put together. It lets people understand that life can be short and be protective of it.

 What aspect of the exhibit did you feel impacted you the most?

• The car door, video, and notebooks.  They’re just like us. 
• The showing of how close the three girls were, because I also have two best friends, and I could never imagine what I would do without them. 
• The timeline of living human beings and death for those human beings.
• All of it – from the timeline, to diary/journal writings, pictures, quotes, video, picture books.
• Everything – the huge lifelike posters, the timelines, the written items, Katie’s email to her mom, the physical objects, all the pictures of the three girls.
• The video of Brian.
• The timeline and seeing how things played out and how easily they could have been changed.
• The pictures of these people and the feeling I got when looking and reading about them.
• The elementary school picture of Rob Koester and Kevin King.
• The impact that my decisions will have on everyone around me.  The whole exhibit really scares me.
• Youth/young lives “wasted” over alcohol – how quickly things can happen and the fact that they are gone forever.
• As a prevention educator, I am awed by the professional completeness of the exhibit – the totality of the presentation.
• Becoming a part of everything they did that day – normal things that my friends and I do – and how quick it could all be over.
• The thing that will linger in my mind is the pictures of the friends sitting together as old people.
• Seeing the photos of the girls and what they would look like when in their senior years – the King boy in his school uniform – the song “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” – the chronology of each student.
• Words cannot explain it.  Sorrow, regret… cannot imagine ever having to bury my parents, sisters, friends because of this.
• The personal items, like the girls’ clothes and artwork… this things make it real to me (someone who didn’t know them). 

Do you think the exhibit will make a significant impact on high school and college-aged students as opposed to other preventative initiatives?

• Yes, it will have a huge impact because you are looking at people just like you that do the same things as you do and you are looking at the harsh realities of what could happen to any of us.
• Yes, it is a personal experience and you can put your and your friends’ faces on the pictures.
• It should – you have to be a really strong person to not be impacted by this exhibit.  The more people that come, the better to really get the awareness and the stories out.
• Yes, it develops a more personal connection that makes students feel like they lost someone they knew.
• I think it will affect any thoughtful person.  The video room gives a dimension that wouldn’t otherwise be possible.
• Yes.  I have never felt so emotionally close to something like this.  I think others will and do feel the same way.
• Yes – hope it expands to more colleges.
• Yes, [because] you see certain things like a mangled car, and things that belonged to people who were alive but had their lives taken away.
• This allows young people to take as much or as little as a student can absorb.  It would be a wonderful tool in conjunction with a speaker or video at the high school level.
• Yes – in addition rather than opposed to other programs – the visual, audio, and text combination is profound – the timeline is especially graphic.
• Absolutely.  This exhibit shows its viewers how easy it is to take the little things for granted. 
• Yes, because it hits them where they live.  It’s not about adults lecturing, it is the victims speaking to them from the grave.
• Yes, I have gone through losing a close friend to a drunk driver, so it definitely has an impact on me, and [will have an impact] on other high school students because it is so devastating.
• This really happened.  It isn’t like school where we are told information and it goes in one ear and out the other.  This drives it in, and it is amazing.  These teens were just like us.
• Yes.  This is real.  This is us.

What are your general comments or concerns about the exhibit?

• Extremely touching and heartbreaking.  I would have come and seen the exhibit even if I wasn’t told to [for a class assignment].  Everyone should come and see this.
• It’s a very powerful presentation that brings back the deceased, but, sadly, only for a moment.
• Sad – but definitely an experience worthwhile for high school/college students.
• Denis – outstanding job!
• I was truly moved and this further increases my avoidance of drinking and driving.
• To not drink and drive.  All those kids who died had amazing lives and they’re gone now.  It’s not worth it at all.  It’s so sad.
• I think that this exhibit should be mandatory for all Siena students.
• Very moving.  Thanks to the families for their willingness to share their tragic loss and the short lives of their beautiful, talented children.  I hope and pray that it does make an impact on any visitors who drink.
• It is outstanding.  My brother was killed by an intoxicated driver in 1999 and I am a frequent speaker at victim impact panels.  I think the personal stories are the best way to show the public the true impact of the crime of DWI.
• I think that it should go “on the road” to as many places as possible to help bring the message across that you should not drink and drive!
• It is an inspiration to me because I have so many family members who drink and some of my friends do.  I know now that I am on the right path for not doing so.
• It’s really sad how lives are ended so fact because of preventable mistakes.  I hope this helps people to think about their actions and possible consequences.
• It is by far the thing that has impacted me the most for alcohol awareness.