General Headquarters — Columbus, Ohio

 

For Immediate Release: August 16, 2005
Contact: OSHP: Lt. Rick Zwayer or Sgt. Tony Bradshaw (614) 752-2792
Ohio High School Athletic Association: Bob Goldring (614) 267-2502
Honda of America Mfg., Inc.: Ed Miller (937) 644-7714

 

Buckle Up for a Successful Season announces partnership with Honda of America for the Annie Guccione Awards program

What:	Announcement of the Annie Guccione Buckle Up for a Successful Season Awards program, presented by Honda of America Mfg., Inc.
When:	Thursday, August 18, 10:00 a.m.
Where:	Ohio State Highway Patrol Academy 740 East 17th Avenue (I-71 @ 17th Ave., near Ohio Expo Center) Columbus
Who:	Kenneth L. Morckel, Director, Ohio Department of Public Safety Colonel Paul D. McClellan, Superintendent, Ohio State Highway Patrol Daniel B. Ross, Ph.D., Commissioner, Ohio High School Athletic Association Lynn Dennison, Assistant Vice President and General Counsel, Honda of America Students from Canal Winchester High School

The Ohio State Highway Patrol and Ohio High School Athletic Association will introduce Honda of America Mfg., Inc. as the sponsor for the Annie Guccione Buckle Up for a Successful Season Awards program.

The Annie Guccione Buckle Up for a Successful Season Awards program will recognize Ohio High School Athletic Association high schools, and junior and senior students from those schools, who actively promote teen traffic safety issues. Students can earn fully paid enrollment to The Honda Teen Defensive Driving Program of the Mid-Ohio School in Lexington, $1,000 in financial assistance for college from Honda. In addition, a state winner will receive his or her choice of a new Honda Civic, Honda Element, or $10,000 in financial assistance for college. Schools also will be recognized for innovative programs with each winning school receiving a banner for display. Nominations will be received through local Patrol posts through the end of February 2006, and winners will be announced at the end of the 2005-2006 school year.

Annie Guccione, a 16-year-old junior from Canal Winchester High School, embodied the essence of the entire Buckle Up for a Successful Season program through her efforts to get her peers to understand the importance of making safe decisions, including buckling up. Her emotional speech in August 2004 at the Buckle Up for a Successful Season kick-off event about a severe crash in which she was involved and one of her sisters was killed, and the importance of safety belt usage, is the cornerstone for the program. Regrettably, just weeks after speaking about her experience, Annie passed away as a result of injuries she sustained in the crash.

Additional information on the Buckle Up for a Successful Season program, and the Annie Guccione Award - including a video of Annie Guccione’s remarks from the August 2004 event - can be found at www.statepatrol.ohio.gov/season.htm.

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