Incredibly grateful and inspired after spending some time with Paralympian, Author, Coach, Teacher, and Incredible Human, Steve Emt.

There has been so much positive feedback from students! Our sophomore and junior classes participated in Choices Matter’s interactive and riveting presentation series. One student shared this message:

“Hi, Steve! I am one of the kids from the school you were at today and I just wanted to thank you for your time. Your perspective is very inspirational, especially with the things I’ve been going through–I really needed that. You’re such a strong individual and I appreciate people like you who are willing to go above and beyond for others; some people in this building probably really needed this today. Your story is beautiful despite the battle; thank you again.”

When reflecting on the story that Chris Sandy told, it made me at first feel distant from the situation, but the more I heard about his life, the more personal it became. When just looking at the facts on the drunk driving incident at first it made me sad but didn’t really connect to me since it feels like a crazy, out of reach scenario. When Mr. Sandy continued to tell his life story, it personalized the situation and made it feel more tangible and real. I can’t imagine having to live with something like that and coming out a better person so it was really inspirational. I think he spreads a very important and emotional message that can really change perspectives and views and hopefully keep people from making similar mistakes.

I am sorry that this email is late, but I wanted to reach out and thank everyone for their contributions to our pre-prom safe driving event. I know it was a lot to take out of your already busy days, but I think it made a huge impact on the kids, and in the end, gave them the information to make safe choices.

I don’t think we always get to see the impact of what we do, but the fact that all our kids had a fun night, and made it home safely, is in large part because of all of you. I look forward to making this a yearly tradition, and hope you can join us next year. Thank you again for keeping our kids safe, and for making Nonnewaug a great place to be.

Thank you! Choices Matter!

Thank you so much for going to our school and telling us your story. I love how you’re still positive even after everything that has happened. You have such good advice for everything. Not everyone has neough courage to tell their story to people. So, I thought it was cool that you did. You seem like such a funny person. You have a crazy story. But somehow you act like nothing ever happened. I love how even after you got paralyzed that didn’t stop you from doing your dreams and what you love.

You are an amazing person.

I just wanted to reach out and thank you and your wonderful team again for coming to Mount View High School and speaking to our students and staff about safe driving practices in your Choices Matter presentation. I was grateful for the time we had together and really appreciate your ability to not only educate but engage and empathize through your difficult experience with others.

Warm regards,

Just wanted to say thank you for coming to Angola High School on April 8th, 2025.

Cara did a terrific job with her presentation and I have received multiple compliments from students, teachers, parents, and staff.

It was great having your assistance in reaching out to our kids and trying to make them understand that choices do matter.

Additionally, this assembly is fitting in great with the mock crash that we have scheduled on the 15th, and with both events, maybe we can make a difference in kids’ lives and bringing the rising number of traffic fatalities down.

I hope we can work together next year and bring you back to Angola High School for another great presentation.

You are amazing! Thank you for being able to come and be a part of the conference. The feedback I got after you spoke was amazing. They could not stop talking about how beneficial it was. I hope that you are contacted by many of them to be able to speak at schools.

I enjoyed the presentation because the words that Steve was saying were really meaningful and truthful because he was being honest about the true consequences of drinking and driving. I would suggest that somebody would see this presentation because it had a big impact because of the story, How truthful and meaningful the presentation was, and the overall lesson about drinking and driving. I Suggest glenholme gets a guest speaker who is someone different to discuss a new topic which would be about D.A.R.E. 1 can relate to the story that steve empt was telling because when my sister was in south Dakota she crashed and flipped atv off a big
hill and got seriously hurt.

We really enjoyed having Chris, Jess & Noah on campus last Friday. The presentation and activities had a big impact and even though it was only the 10th grade at the presentation, we had many seniors, juniors, and even freshman and eighth graders participate in the activities portion. I had a student approach me at our Fall Festival that evening and thank me for bringing such a powerful assembly to campus – this speaks volumes coming from a 10th grader!

Chris absolutely hit it out of the park! He successfully navigated between being passionate about his message without either glamorizing his past or in any way being condescending or disrespectful to his audience. We’re a small, ultra-conservative school so “outside” speakers do not easily win over the trust of our students. Chris did.

I highly recommend Tammy as a speaker on driver and passenger safety. She shares her son’s story with heartfelt compassion, creating a powerful and personal connection with students. Her genuine concern for their well-being is evident, and her message truly resonates. Tammy’s dedication to promoting safety among young people is both inspiring and impactful.

Hi, Sorry for the late response, end of the school year gets crazy! We all really enjoyed it. Some students had lunch with your crew before the presentation and really appreciated the extra time. Students volunteered to stay after to help clean and chat more. Because we are a smaller residential school sometimes we have the same kids for a year or two, however Steve said we could possibly schedule a different speaker if we wanted to offer another experience. The banner is hanging in our school house. The packet about teamwork and captain/leadership qualities is awesome, I plan on using that in my P.E. classes. I am reaching out to our English teachers to see if they can incorporate Steves book into their curriculum somehow. Some students have borrowed it to read already. Here are some emails I got from some students who attended!

Thank you, Fletcher Cleaves!

As me and my peers listened to the presentation Tammy performed at our high school we learned about why it is important to speak up to not just risky drivers but to any sort of conflict that could hurt ourselves or others around us. The story brought many to understand the speaker’s points and views and I believe that everyone took something out of the address. Throughout Ms. Tammy’s presentation I learned the values of safe driving and its importance especially to student drives.

“You finally conveyed to me and all of my peers why driving safely is so important. You have become my inspiration to work through tough times and that my past doesn’t define me. I will likely think about you daily, reminding me that my choices matter. You are such a role model.”

Once again, thank you so much for doing the program. We really appreciate it!

“Fletcher captured the minds and hearts of the audience with his story while renewing hope and faith to reach beyond the sky. His message was powerful and his gift is full of passion.  Fletcher is a must-see presentation!”